Hope Beyond Hope
by T'Mu-Yor
Summary: Ever wonder what happened to those who the Technos took away? Mainly Bray. Follow the techno prisoners. New Update. Please read even if you have read this story before. This is a OcBray romance. But don't turn away just because of that.
1. Alone Revised

A/N Hello everyone. I'm sorry that I've been absent from writing this fan fiction but my life has taken a drastic turn in the last two years. I started dating this wonderful guy that I had a crush on for nearly four years. And then we got engaged and now we are married. I'm in college now and truly busy. But the other day I was reading over my old fiction and thought maybe I'll try rewriting it. I also noticed that the story had taken a turn that I got lost on.

Chapter one

Alone

The night was dark and a slight chill filled the late fall air. In the darkness you could see every star in the sky. In a way it almost made you glad that the virus came about. In the past it was so hard to see the stars in the sky. With all the technology and electricity the world was dying. It was a sad fate we had sentenced the world to. But with the coming of the virus the world was slowly healing.

Well it was until the technos came around. They started to bring the technology back. It is a slow process but they were accomplishing that goal. But for some reason they vanished. It was a weird thing. One day they were everywhere you turned the next they had packed up and left.

A shuffling noise to my left broke me from my reverie. Turning my head slightly I saw a slightly limping Bray and sleepy Lily approaching. Sitting up slowly "What's wrong?" I said worry easily saturating my voice.

"Nana…" Lily sniffled clinging to Bray's leg like a life line "I had a bad dream" Reaching over I pick up the small girl and place her in my lap. "Alright sweety… Nana is here"

Looking up at Bray I gave him a sweet smile "Sorry… I should…" He quickly interrupted me by shaking his head "Don't worry about it" he gave me a half smile before turning to go back to bed "Good night Bray"

He nodded then turned walking back into the compound. "So my sweet little Chibi should I show you where the constellations are?" The small girl on my lap gave me a pouting look "But Nana… I know where they are!"

With a laugh I tickled her sides "Alright them smarty… then how bout you show me" With a nod Chibi started to point out where many of the constellations were located.

As she spoke I again drifted into my own thoughts again starting where I had been interrupted. The technos, they had come barging into our land and taking control of everything and everyone. It had been horrible. Many people got hurt and even more died.

It had been a quiet day in my tribes little compound when the Technos had invaded. My tribe the Falcons scattered to the wind trying our best to out run and out maneuver them. We all failed horribly. I was one of the last captured it was hard and I haven't seen any of the other since.

I was dragged to the edge of our tribal territory then knocked out. When I woke back up I was hooked up to strange contraptions. The days, weeks and months crept by as I was moved from compound to compound. Finally I had moved here.

We were stationed at an old military cadet compound. It seemed ironic that I had ended up here. Before the virus I had spent many years of my 'child hood' at this very compound. Although it had changed a bit since I had last attended the school. The Technos had added tall metal fences with barbed wire to keep the prisoners in.

A few weeks after I was brought to the camp Bray was brought in battered and beaten. He was in bad shape one of his legs broken a large gash running across his face. It appeared that one of his arms had been broken and healed already. He was sick and weak it took nearly two months and every resource I had to get him back up and running.

He didn't talk for the majority of that time except to cry out in his sleep. He called the name Amber for months especially when he had first come and had a fever. It was so rare he would talk accept to the children. He told them stories every night, stories about before the virus and even a few about after.

He still rarely talks but he is slowly opening up. After he had gotten better he did start to ask a few of the new comers about Amber. But he rarely got any answers. Well that was until one day. A strange girl came to our camp. It was strange she was only there for a day or two before being moved on, she looked perfectly healthy.

After that Bray stopped asking after her. He was depressed for a while but he slowly started to cheer up. The children helped I think especially Lex and Lilly. Ah yes Lex and Lilly. They came about two days before Bray talked to that girl.

Thinking about Lex and Lilly. How strange it was to find out that the little twin kids were related to me. My older brother had just missed the age of the virus. He had been engaged to this royal pain in the butt of a woman. I hadn't spoken to him since just after the virus had killed our mother.

Lily had come in very sick. She was malnourished and near deaths door. While her twin brother Lexington had been alright but had a broken arm. While I was trying to get Chibi well I had found a picture in her pocket. The picture was one of my brother, sister and I when I was just a little older then her. Lex told me the boy in the picture was their daddy.

I found out later that he had died just after their birth and their mother had given them that picture to remember him by. Then she had been killed and they had been captured by the Technos. It made my heart ache but I was glad that they had found me.

"Nana… you aren't paying attention!" Chibi whined and I laughed softly again being shaken from my reverie. "I'm sorry hun… just thinking about how cute you are and how you really should be in bed"

The young girl gave me a pout shaking her head "NO! I want to hear a story please!!!" I sighed "come on chibi it is time for bed… I'll tell you a story on the way back into the compound" with a pouting nod the little girl gave up and I easily stood up walking inside to put her to bed.

Next Day

The chill in the air had gotten worse. Winter was quickly approaching and the signs were everywhere. "We're getting low on supplies Syberia. I would guess about two weeks at best before we are completely out and winter is setting in"

I glanced over my shoulder at Syke. With a heavy sigh I nodded "Call a meeting we need to figure out what course of action we are going to take." He gave me a nod then turned to gather up the twenty people remaining in camp.

Bray slowly approached me as I stood there staring out into the open field that surrounded our compound. "Do you have a plan?" he spoke turning his gaze to follow where mine was pointed.

"Kindof… yes… we can't stay here forever. There isn't food around for miles… we need to move on. Take what we can and let people go where they please… for those with no place to go… we'll go south… towards my tribe lands… hopefully no one has moved in on them yet. We can survive there until winter passes and then go from there."

He turned and watched me for a second before nodding "I'll go check the stores, see if we have any heaver clothing and blankets."

I turned looking at him then nodding "Thanks Bray… you're a big help" He laughed slightly shaking his head "it is the least I owe you."

With a slight shrug of my shoulders I smiled "You don't owe me anything Bray… You helped get Lilly back to health if it weren't for you I would be lost"

With that he turned to go inside while I waited the gathering crowd to voice my ideas and listen to their opinions.

Gathering

"Are you crazy! Why would we want to leave the compound right before winter" "Where are you taking us!" "I want to go home not to some strange woods" "You got to be joking"

The response to my idea was mixed. Most of the people wanted to stay or go back to their own tribes they didn't even listen to a word I had to say. I just shook my head and let them vent. "Our supplies are nearly gone. Syke says we have maybe two weeks worth of food left. I say we can either take what we have and find someplace with more food or stay here and starve!"

By the end of the 'debate' I had six other 'adults' that were going to join me in the trek to my old tribal lands and five children that made a total of twelve of us. The rest of the 'adults' and kids were making their way towards where they thought the nearest 'city' lay.

"Alright… Bray has set about getting the supplies we need to gather everything up and ration it between all parties. Everyone sets off tomorrow before the weather turns bad on us"

With a grumbling nod the members of our makeshift tribe disburse to get ready for the upcoming day.

A/N Thanks everyone for reading. I'm going to be updating each chapter as I get a chance the story will change a bit so even if you have read the story so far I beg you to read the new chapters. My writing abilities are constantly evolving so I hope that this story keeps new people coming and old readers intertained.

Members of the group that is leaving

Trista: 22 Female Mother of the group. Wanted to be a nurse and had some training before the virus. She's short 52 with dark blond almost brown hair and Brown eyes.

Syke: 16 Male Junk Dealer from a city called New Haven. He is tall and Kind of chunky with green eyes. Usually is seen wearing a pair of cargo pants, a red mesh shirt in the warm months and a heavy trench over it in the colder months

Jake: 19 Male stuck up rich kid who needs a bit of an attitude adjustment. Blond hair blue eyes average build and height

Sniper/Amy: 25 Female farm girl type who is good at hunting. Strait blackish brown hair with red highlights and dark green eyes.

Kale: 27 Male sporty hunter guy. Black spiky hair and dark blue eyes.

Bray: 23 Male you all know him.

Syberia/ Elia: 20 Female hard core military survival chick that has a hidden soft spot for romance and kids. Tries to act all big and bad hiding away her fears and pains. 54 with dark blond hair and bright blue eyes. Has tribal paint of tiger stripes on arms and face.

Chibi/Lilly: 3 Female small mini version of Syberia. Blond hair blue eyes. Very hyperactive but loves to cling to her aunt. She and her brother get along well. She is rarely seen away from Bray or Syberia.

Lexington/Lex: 3 Male hyperactive kid who likes to learn about 'helping people'. He gets along well with everyone and is very adventurous. Brown hair green eyes.

Checker/Timmy: 6 Male Hyperactive kid who loved to play checkers with is mom. He has red hair and brown eyes. He has a tribal painting on his cheek that looks like a mini checker board.

Darien: 11 Male Has long blond almost white hair and bright green eyes. He's very quiet and keeps to himself.

Kitty/Kristy: 8 Female a little prissy is the best way to describe her. She complains a lot and doesn't like to get dirty. Pretty light brown hair and brown eyes.


	2. Sunrise

AN as some of you might have noticed I have deleted the chapters of my old story. I did this because I have decided to change a good deal of the story and didn't want people to get confused. I am sorry if this is confusing you now but I think it will make better sense if I do it this way. Alright so here is the next chapter.

Chapter 2

Sunrise

The morning dawned colder then the previous day. This confirmed my fears that winter was quickly approaching. As I watched the sun crest the horizon I wondered how my little band of misfits were going to survive the trip, let alone the winter. Silently I prayed to god that my tribe land and fort were still intact enough to support us for our first winter together.

As I turned to go back inside I noticed a second shadow in the early morning light. Bray sat atop a small 'watch tower' looking to be lost in thought. Climbing up the ladder I approached him silently watching his body language for subtle hints about his mood or what he could possibly be thinking.

It was easy to see his thoughts were not happy ones. He was tucked into a ball with his knees close to his chest, arms folded around them and his chin resting on his knees. For a brief moment I saw him in my minds eye like a lost child waiting for someone to find him only to snap out of it realizing that we all were just lost children hoping to be found.

"You can sit down and join me you know" Bray spoke so quietly that I nearly missed what he had said. I also nearly jumped out of my boots from shock that he knew I was there even though I had come up so quietly.

"True…" I said as I approached and sat down next to him my shoulder only inches away from his because of the small size of the 'tower'.

"What brings you up and out here at such an early time?" I let one leg dangle over the ledge but tucked my other leg up close to my chest mocking his position.

It didn't get a reply for a long while so I just continued to sit and enjoy the view of the early morning. It was typical for Bray to be silent; he had been that way since he came in unless he felt up to telling one of his bedtime stories. Then out of no where he shrugged his shoulders.

"So much has changed even over the past few years. It is hard to know who you are and where you belong." The way he spoke was more so like he was just thinking out loud then answering my question but I didn't interrupt and I didn't judge what he was saying. Sometimes everyone needs to vent especially in these times.

"Before the virus everything seemed so black and white either you belonged or you didn't. If you loved someone you didn't let them go without a fight but now in this new world if someone leaves or gets taken away everyone moves on like they were never around. Nothing in this new world seems right." Again he fell silent and I took that as my cue to speak.

"That is true, but Bray I don't think anything was ever as black and white as you make it out to be. Life gets harder as we grow older, even before the Virus that was true… in the time we live in we have been shoved forward in our lives, decisions and challenges that pre-virus we would have had to make in our late thirties early forties are being made now. Children who should be playing and having fun are working to survive. That is the only major change that had been made to our lives well that and our young care free perception of what life should be like."

As I spoke I reached over and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Even before the Virus I had to grow up quickly. My parents had divorced when I was two and both my dad and my mom seemed to blame me for what went wrong in their relationship. My older brother couldn't stay out of jail and my sister wouldn't do anything that my mom said so I was always punished for their mistakes. My mom and step dad were business owners and were never around so they carted me off to military school. My dad was a drunken fool who I never heard from. I've been on my own and grown up for years before the virus hit us."

Bray looked over at me shaking his head "Everyone is messed up in this new world hu?" It was so random that I burst out laughing. After calming down which took me at the very least five minutes I gave him a reassuring smile.

"So what got you onto this train of thought hum?" I questioned trying to get him to continue talking. He had said more in the last few minutes then in the whole time I had known him. Why should I let him stop now.

"We're Leaving" was his brief answer. But after a moment he continued. "Every time I seem to get settled in something changes or we move location. Before the Technos invaded I had finally found my place. Or so I thought."

He sighed but wasn't done "Elli, the girl that was here before, she told me that my tribe had moved on like I didn't even exist. Amber, my wife, had a son… my son and now she's moved on and with an ex-Techno of all people."

To say I was surprised at his continued monologue was an understatement. My heart ached for the pain I knew he was feeling. Out of old pre-Virus habit I leaned over and embraced him in a sideways hug my head resting on his shoulder.

For a moment he sat stunned. In our little group physical contact was limited to the children and this was even more true for Bray because he tended to isolate himself from everyone but the children. But after a moment he relaxed and accepted the comfort.

"This world is full of shifts in what we perceive as reality. It will continue to change until everything is right. I believe everyone is in for a major change thanks to the Technos. My tribe is going to be all new unless some of the others managed to survive and make their way back. I never even planned on being a tribal leader it just fell onto Joanna and my laps. Joanna is… was my co leader… she was and hopefully still is a wonderful girl. I just hope you get a chance to meet her."

He gave me a half smile and we proceeded to sit in comfortable silence until the sun was well on its way into the sky. Slowly the sounds of our camp evolved from nightly silence to the clatter and clang of daily living.

With a heavy sigh I looked over at Bray then got u p. "A new day… a new adventure hu? Come on… let's see what new things are awaiting us over that horizon" With a slight chuckle he joined me and we made our way down the tower and into the building to get ready for our new adventure.

000000000000 Later 0000000000000000

The group had gathered on the old drill field. Eleven people were in a group on the southern portion including me and nine others were divided into three smaller groups heading in various other directions. Late last night we had found an old map so that all groups could find their cities and plot their trips home.

Most groups had seven or eight days journey home but my rag tag group had nearly a week. Most of the people in my group had little desire to return to their old tribes, either they had been given news of the tribe members demise or the trip would have taken them more then two weeks of travel and in this age doing that alone could be a deadly adventure.

After an hour long goodbye to all of our new friends my group was all that was left remaining at the base. Ten eager faces watched me waiting for instructions and with a sigh I gave them my most confident smile. "This trip won't be easy. Most of you are still healing form our captors' punishments, because of this I want every adult to pair up"

"Sadly we have an odd number so Trista, Skye and Jake I want you in a group with Darien and Kristy. Sniper and Kale how about you keep an eye on Checkers and Bray and I will watch Lex and Chibi." Everyone nodded and got into their assigned mini groups. This would make it easier for everyone to stay together. And even if they did get separated at least they wouldn't be alone.

Soon we started out. As we did so I picked up Chibi and sat her on my hip. Then I placed Lex between me and Bray so that he couldn't venture off. Our little group took the lead seeing as I was the only person who knew exactly where we were going.


	3. High Noon

AN Hey everyone I know it's been years I am busy with life and everything. It is good to see some people are still dedicated tribe. Please watch for updates I'm going to be trying to update all my stories more frequently.

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the main Tribal Characters but I do own my own so please ask if you want to barrow them.

Hope Beyond Hope

Chapter 3

Noon High

The harsh late fall winds were blowing across the flat planes and most of us were only wearing t-shirts and jeans. The sparse blankets were being used to keep the children and sick warm. I had assigned Syke and Snyper to scout the area to look for anything that might be useful for our little band of misfits. We weren't in any tight formation most of the children were grouped together with Trista near the middle of the group with all the other adults scattered around the outer edge trying to coral the kids so they wouldn't wander off.

I was currently trailing slightly behind the group, they all knew the general direction of the forest we were heading towards so I didn't have to solidly guide the group so I had drifted back so that I could think. I currently had my little Lily curled up on my hip wrapped in a thin blanket and sleeping against my shoulder. I could see Lex playing a game of I spy with Checkers.

My mind was drifting miles ahead of us to the encampment that we were making our way towards. I missed my friends especially Joanna she was more than a friend she was my sister and confidant. When I hadn't been able to track her down I was devastated. I knew that when you were told that someone was deleted it didn't mean they were dead, they had become the abandoned and entrapped. The Technos didn't care for us and many people did end up dying in the camps. People grew sick and no one did anything to help them.

I was startled out of my reverie by Bray placing a hand on my shoulder. "Do you want me to take her? You've held her since we left nearly six hours ago" I looked up at the man who only a few short weeks ago was too weak to even feed himself. It had taken a lot of work but he was mostly healthy now but I knew that this journey was going to take a lot out of him. "No don't worry about it Bray I got her for now"

He smiled and again shifted his attention back to the trail. He slowed his pace so that he could walk by my side and I was glad to have the company even if it was silent. After a few minutes Lily started to stir and whimper, I knew that she was having another nightmare. Lex had told me as best as his young vocabulary aloud that the two of them had suffered from neglect and abuse between the time that their mother died and they found me. Technos had no use for kids with no parents they were used as experiment test subjects and when they refused they were hit and kicked.

I softly started to coo and purr to calm Lily down and she soon settled back into a deep sleep. As I turned my attention from Lily back to the trail I caught the odd look that Bray was giving me. "What was that?"

I gave him a half smile and shrugged my one available shoulder "When Lily and Lex came to the encampment she was really sick, she would stay awake all night sobbing until she would pass out from utter exhaustion. Even after that she would wake up only a few moments later. I spent three days trying everything I could think of to calm her down and help her sleep than I had a friend come through the encampment from before the Virus and I was content so I started to purr, an old habit from before the virus, and it soothed her to the point she was able to sleep. Now purring is the only way to sooth her nightmares."

He smiled "I could see how the sound could be soothing it just isn't a sound that you hear typically hear from a human" I nod and then laugh "Have you ever wondered why I'm called Syberia… I mean it isn't my birth name… In my tribe you are given names of animals, because I purr and because I'm a strong independent leader I was called Syberian Tigress but I shortened it at the encampment to Syberia."

My arms were getting tired so I carefully shifted Lily from one hip to the other but then my hair came out of the bun I had it in and some fell in my face. I growled and tried to blow it away but it wasn't working. Lily was too big to be held in one arm so I was stuck with hair obstructing my view of the world, that was until I felt a warm hand brush the hair out of my face and behind my ears. Bray's hand lingered behind my ear for just a fraction of a second to long and if my cheeks weren't already wind burnt I would have blushed a bright red. "Uh… thanks"

He gave me a sweet smile than tucked his hands back into his pockets. "I knew of a tribe back near where my tribe was called the Eco tribe they used nature names. My wif… err ex wife was part of that tribe for a while. So I'm familiar with the concept of adapting tribe names."

I frown shaking my head "I am really sorry about everything. I know that you probably want to make your way back towards your tribe after winter passes. My tribe always made a trip to the nearest city after winter to trade the skins that we collected over the winter, what I'm trying to say is once winter is over I'll escort you to the nearest city even if none of the others want to go that way you can head back and rejoin your tribe and maybe find your wife again…"

He shook his head and reached out placing his hand on my shoulder "No, actually I'm thinking it might be time for me to move on from the Mall Rats, I mean Amber is great but she isn't very loyal. This isn't the first time that she 'moved on' because we were separated. I might want to go back to the city so I can see my son but I don't belong with the Mall Rats any more. I feel more at home with you and our rag tag group than I ever felt with the mall rats."

I nod, about this time Lily was waking up and trying to get down from my arms. "Nana can I get down and go play with the other kids?"

I smile and slowly lower the small girl down to the ground and pat her head "Go play Lily but be careful and keep warm. I don't want you to get sick" The little girl hugged my leg than ran over hugging Bray's leg before scampering off to join the other kids who were playing various games together.

"She's a sweet girl, she really makes me miss my niece, they aren't that far apart in age." I nodded shivering slightly. The cold was getting to me now that I had set down the warm child and her blanket. Bray must have noticed the shiver because he stepped closer to me and put an arm around my shoulder. "Now I think you should follow your own advice Syberia, you gave away all the warm cloths and blankets and here you are with just a sleeveless t-shirt and holey jeans"

It was a very sweet gesture and I appreciated the warmth that Bray seemed to radiate but it was sending me mixed signals, Bray was being so sweet but I had never been very good at determining if 'sweet gestures' were just friendly gestures or if they were 'more'.

We walked like that until the sun was getting low in the sky. "Alright everyone we need to set up camp before it gets to dark. I need all the kids to go around and look for twigs and small bits of wood so that we can make a fire, some of the adults need to branch off and find fallen branches from the scattered trees. A few of us need to try to string up the tarps between the two trees over here so that we have a makeshift shelter. I need Sniper to work on the fire once the wood is collected and the rest of the adults to see if there is anything that we might be able to add to our food supply, you know fruits, berries, greens"

With that everyone went their separate ways starting on their projects, Trista was the only one who didn't help with the adults, she was trying to keep an eye on all the kids who were busy holding up sticks and long pieces of grass asking if they were good enough for the fire. Within a half an hour there was a small fire set up about three feet in front of a make shift three sided tarp lean to. There was a bunch of blankets laid on the ground. Everyone was going to end up sharing blankets so that we could keep warm. The kids again would be crammed in the middle for protection from the elements and possible predators.

Soon everyone had food in their bellies, although not a lot, and were warmed up the children were put to bed and most of the adults were snuggling in to rest. We had set up a two person watch to make sure everything went well and the fire stayed lit. Bray and I were on first watch so we took up a post next to the fire with our backs to the others. It was quiet and cold and again I found myself shivering "Come here, the fire is warm but you still are wearing next to nothing for late fall." He took off his coat and pulled me into his lap wrapping the coat around me and him so that the fire warmed his back but the coat kept out the cold.

We sat like that for a while quietly watching the darkness. Soon our shift was over so we got up and woke up the next to watchers before curling up under the blankets.

111111111111111112222222222222222222333333333333333333333333

Morning came quickly and we all got up breaking down camp the kids were whimpering and whining about having to get up and start moving again and many of the adults were sore from toting around the youngest of the children and walking so many miles. We were making good progress if everything continued at the pace we had set we should be there in five days instead of seven.

We again we formed a corralling formation to keep the kids from getting into trouble. Today was luckily just a bit warmer than yesterday but the wind still seemed to bite at your skin. Again I ended up trailing behind the group so I could keep an eye on everyone… a few times I had to yell up for the group to shift left or right but other than that the group was working fine together. Lily was playing with the others today so I had my hands free but they were wrapped around my body to keep warm. I was startled when a coat was draped over my shoulders. "Bray, now you're going to freeze."

He shrugged a bit and just tucked his hands in his pockets "I'm fine, it takes a lot to make me cold." I shake my head and walk closer to him "Fine but I'm giving it back in a few minutes I wasn't the one who was near deaths door only about a month ago… you can't afford to be sick so soon after getting better."

He reached up patting my cheek "I'm fine, besides if I start getting cold I can always go chase the kids around a bit, you on the other hand need to keep an eye on where the group is going to make sure that we don't get off track"

With a laugh I agreed to keep the coat, for now. We were walking quietly side by side when all of a sudden two little rug rats known as Lily and Lex came barreling towards us and promptly started to try to climb Bray. "Ha ha Lil I'm king of mount Bray!" taunted Lex from Bray's shoulders. Lily was clinging to his arm pouting. I grabbed the small girl and hoisted her up onto my shoulders laughing "Lex be careful, did you ever consider that Bray didn't want to be turned into a jungle gym?"

Lex leaned over so that his face was in Bray's "Uncle Bray doesn't mind do you?"

Bray laughed and reached up tickling Lex's sides. "Nope, Don't mind at all, just give me a bit of a warning next time"

Lex nearly tumbled off of Bray's shoulders and Lily took the initiative to scramble from my shoulders onto Bray's. I had to reach out and catch Lex as she skidded down Bray's back. "Chibi! You shouldn't do that it is rude."

Lily gave me a sorry look than stuck her tongue out at Lex "NOW I'm QUEEN of Mount Bray!"

I put Lex on my hip holding him tightly to me so he wouldn't jump off on Bray. "Uncle Bray tell us a story, we've heard all the stories about her old tribe could you tell us stories about yours?"

Bray nodded and reached up pulling Lily from his shoulders "I don't know, none of the stories I have are very interesting. I could tell you about my little brother. Have you ever heard of the man named Zoot?"

Lex and Lily looked at each other than at Bray "Yeah, momma was part of Zoots tribe until he died than afterwards she left the city because no one liked Zoots tribe and it was dangerous for us kids in the city."

Bray looked stunned but nodded "Well Zoot was my little brother, you know before the Virus he was a really good kid. We use to spend the weekends with our grandparents on a farm outside of the city. I remember once when he wasn't much older than you two he got in his head that he wanted to catch one of the lambs that grandpa had just bought. He chased the poor little thing around for hours before giving up and plopping down on the ground a few minutes later the same lamb that he had been chasing came over and bleated at him before laying down next to him."

The kids giggled a bit before struggling to climb down and scamper off back to the other kids. "Zoot was your brother? You never told me that"

He looked away frowning "Is that a problem? I mean most people freak out when they find out that Zoot was my brother, he was a bit of a tyrant"

I laugh "I'm not one to judge siblings, my brother was constantly in and out of jail and my sister was a bit of a flake. Who your siblings are has no bearing on who you are. And besides like my niece and nephew said my sister in law was a member of Zoot's tribe and I did visit her a few times. Zoot didn't seem like to bad of a guy, a little demented and headstrong at times, but a sweet guy underneath it all."

He smiled and leaned over kissing my cheek "Thank you Syberia you don't know how much it means to me for you to say that."

I bit my lower lip looking up at him "Elia… my real name is Elia, only Joanna really knows or remembers my real name, well and now you"

He gave me the sweetest smile and nodded "Elia is a nice name, thanks for telling me. Come on we need to catch up with the others were trailing to far behind"

AN

Hey everyone thanks for reading don't forget to review!


	4. Afternoon

AN Hey everyone, I'm really sorry for the major delay in posting this chapter up but my computer went crazy on me. I had this chapter written then my computer died on me and well I lost EVERYTHING not just this blasted chapter of a fan fiction but the 3 chapters I had perfected of my original story. It sucks and I'm really upset but well life moves on and had to get this off my chest. Please read and review. Thanks to all my loyal readers who are patiently waiting on the updates I hope that maybe I can get them out quicker this time.

Disclaimer: I don't own Bray or the Tribe I do own my personal characters but I'm nice and don't mind if you use them as long as you give me a shout out and ask for permission!

Chapter 4

Afternoon

I gave Bray a reassuring smile. I could see that something was bothering him about Zoot and I reached out placing my hand on his shoulder before making my way towards the group. The day was turning out to be better than I had expected, because we had not been stopping as much as I had anticipated and the weather had held out we were ahead of schedule. We had passed a large boulder that if I remembered correctly was the half way marker between the military school and the forest encampment. My eyes drifted around the group and I could easily see how tired everyone was, even the children were not playing as much as before mostly just trailing beside one of the adults, or being carried by someone. The adults were worn as well so I decided it might be time to stop for the day, even if it was only a little after noon.

"Bray perhaps we should stop early, we are a bit ahead of schedule and everyone seems utterly exhausted" he nodded in agreement and I made my way up to the front of the group to inform everyone that we would be stopping early to get some extra rest. Once I informed them that we would be stopping early they all sat down right where they were standing and sighed with relief. Finally after a good half an hour of just relaxing we all got up and started about the task of setting up camp. The children were gathering up fire wood to sit up by the fire pit and most of the adults were hunting for food. We found a late blooming apple tree that had a good deal of eatable apples, so we gathered up as much as we could. It would be good to have some fresh food with us on the trail that we wouldn't have to cook. We were just about to set up the tarp to make our lean-to when Jake came back to the camp.

"There's a really nice hot spring just over that hill! It is just the right temperature we can all have a bath!" The other adults perked up and the children started to sulk. Everyone was sore and tired so after some debating it was decided that the best thing to do was for all of us to relax in the hot spring at the same time. That way everyone could keep an eye on the kids and still be able to enjoy the warm soothing water. We would all just have to wear our underwear and then let it dry by the fire over night. Lucky for us Trista thought of everything. She had packed four towels incase someone got wet, so we had a way to dry off, at least a little, before getting dressed.

After we finished setting up camp the group followed Jake to the hot springs. The children were running ahead and squealing about water fights and marko polo. Trista was trotting behind them trying to keep them from stripping their cloths prematurely. We quickly came up to the hot spring and it was rather close to perfect for our uses. It was deep enough for the adults to be able to sit on the solid rock bottom to relax and the children could swim around and still touch. There was a deeper spot towards the center where the adults could stand and the water would cover their shoulders, well at least the shorter females. The spring was about 20ft in diameter so there was plenty of space for the children to play and the adults to relax on the edge of the water.

The children quickly undressed and scrambled into the water before the adults could even get there. Laughing at the children's antics we all quickly undressed and joined them in the water. Even though it wasn't prearranged the girls gravitated towards one side of the pool while the boys stayed on the other. Many of the females were modest and even though we were still wearing our underwear they didn't want to be around the males so this worked out well. We hadn't even been in the water for ten minutes when Lily and Lex came swimming over to me and grabbed my arm begging me to come out to the deeper area and play. I was reluctant at first but after they had pestered me for a few minutes, even using the puppy eyes, I gave in.

As I followed them out to the deeper area of the pool I was ambushed by all the kids. They tried to climb on me and dunk me under the water but I playfully fought them off. I was getting a bit overwhelmed with all the small bodies pushing and pulling on me when I felt one of the little rugrats being lifted off of my back. Turning my head I caught the sight of Bray tickling Checkers, then being ambushed by half of the children who had jumped off me and started to attack him. Soon it was an all out war as the other adults finally gave up trying to hide in their corners and joined us in the middle of the spring.

We swam around for a good hour and a half before deciding it was time to get out and return to the camp for the night. First the adults got out, dried off and dressed before corralling the kids and getting them dressed. We all went back to camp and set about cooking a meal, we made more tonight because we had found the apples and had refilled some of our food supply. After eating the kids fell asleep almost immediately. We all decided that it would be a good idea to get some extra sleep and the rest of the adults quickly followed the kids to bed leaving Bray and I up for the first shift of night watch. The sun was just setting when we heard the content sounds of everyone peacefully sleeping.

We sat quietly watching the stars enjoying each other's company in the silence of the night. The two hour shift was nearly over when I saw a shooting star blaze across the sky. "Bray a shooting star make a wish" he looked over at me as if I was crazy but then turned his attention back to the sky his gaze seeming to fade as if thinking then he silently nodded.

I watched him quietly wondering what he had wished for but not voicing my question, because everyone knows that if you tell your wish then it won't come true. I sat up shivering slightly as the cool night air started to get to me. He must have noticed because I felt an arm reach up and draw me closer then I felt his coat being drawn around the two of us. I was shocked for a moment before relaxing into the warmth and resting my head on his shoulder. He in turn put his head on my head and we sat comfortably watching the night around us.

"Bray, I errr well I have a question, you don't have to answer if you don't want to but well, you told me that this isn't the first time that … Amber had moved on… how much did it hurt to realize that she didn't love you any longer" I sat quietly refusing to move my head off of his shoulder staring out into the night so I wouldn't meet his eyes.

His eyes drifted down to look at me but he finally answered "I… I don't know… the first time that it happened I thought she was dead. She supposedly died while the Mall Rats were getting the cure. When we tracked the cure down the building collapsed and she didn't come out along with another girl in the tribe. I had somewhat moved on while she was gone, I dated someone else but it was never the same… more of a rebound thing. But when she came back I was too relieved that she was alive to feel overly hurt about her moving on. We eventually got back together and the whole time I had a little voice in the back of my head telling me that perhaps what we had wasn't love but a really close friendship but I ignored it because all I wanted was to love her. This time I guess I just feel relieved that I don't have to pretend to love her anymore."

I tilted my head up amazed that he would tell me so much and finally I sat up so that I could look him in the eye. "Thank you for telling me Bray." For a moment I sat in silence before I decided that perhaps I should tell him why I asked "Before the Techno's came there was a guy who I met after the Virus who eventually became part of my tribe, his name is Dragon. We were dating and even had planned on getting married but then the technos came. I missed him so much the first few weeks while I was gone but eventually I noticed the lack of that longing and when I searched for the feelings it was more like missing a brother then a husband or a love. I feel like I've betrayed him because that love has changed so much. I don't know what to do if we return and he's there waiting for me"

He gave me a thoughtful look then shook his head "The best advice I can give you Elia is to just explain it to him. Tell him what is going on in your head and in your heart, don't just leave him in the dark or lead him on. If you ever truly loved him he deserves that much. It will hurt him a lot less if you just come out and say it. I think I've realized that perhaps since the death of all the adults a lot of us have been longing for a place to belong, someone to belong to so we've started to just assume that any strong emotion we have for someone is love. We try to force our feelings to conform to that idea and that is why so many relationships aren't working out in this world"

I leaned up kissing him on the cheek "Thank you Bray, you're very good at giving advice. I don't know where I would be without your support these past few months. I don't like being a leader but again I've been pushed into the spot. It is good to have some kind of support."

We just sat there curled up to keep warm until our shift was over. We slowly got up with a sigh and made our way to the blankets to wake up Syke and Sniper for their shift. I was just settling down under the blanket that was left out for me when Bray came back around. "It seems like all the other blankets are being used, do you mind if I join you?"

I looked up at Bray and nodded lifting up the blanket, he quickly got under it and we snuggled up to the rest of the group. With a soft goodnight I drifted off to sleep cocooned in the warmth of my new friend and my new tribe.

-------

Morning came all too quickly and I was woke up by Lily pouncing on my stomach. Next to me I heard a echoed Ooof as Lex pounced on Bray only a few seconds later. I cracked one eye open to see most of the camp up and getting around for the day. For the first time in days my body wasn't cry out to sit still and for that I was grateful. I reached up tickling the child who was occupying my lap then after setting her on the ground stood up to get moving for the day. Everyone in camp seemed to still be in a relaxed mood from the night before and I knew that we probably should have already moved out but I let that slide. Clearing my throat loudly everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at me. "Alright everyone, it's about time to get out of here. We should probably break down camp and get moving. So far we've had luck with the weather but we still have a good two and a half days worth of traveling and we shouldn't push our luck any father than we already have."

Amazingly no one complained, I guess that they were just glad that they got the extra time to rest the night before. The camp was quickly broke down and we all had a light breakfast of fresh apples. Soon we moved out again but this time I took the lead of the group. We were coming up to the area that would be harder to navigate so I knew that I needed to be up front and actually pay attention to what was around us. Lily was trotting around me like a pixie but for once I wasn't paying much attention. She soon got upset with me ignoring her and went to play with the other children. Near the end of the day we came across an old road. "This road is a day's walk from my tribe's camp. If you follow it you will come upon the closest town to our camp. If I remember right that town is three days away from Bray's city, if you go by water, it is four days walk to Syke's home and a week's walk to Trista's. I'm not sure about the rest of you but once winter passes we can go there and perhaps someone will know how to get to your tribal towns. I do want to remind you that you are all welcome to just stay and join my tribe if you want but I'm leaving that totally up to you."

They all started arguing wondering why we couldn't turn here and go into the city now instead of continuing onto my tribe's land. Growling I barked out a 'be quiet' and glared at everyone. "If you want to follow this road for three more days help yourself but we only have about a day of food left and I am going home. If you all can just be patient I'll take you there once winter passes but I warn you it's a mostly uphill walk to the city."

I stood quietly waiting on their decision for a few moments but eventually all the others nodded and decided that it was in their best interest to join me for the winter. With that I turned and again started walking. We only had two more hours of walking before we would make camp and I was getting tired of everyone questioning my choices. I didn't like being in charge but when I'm pushed into a leadership position I try my best. Bray was walking beside me this time and apparently over heard my growling and grumbling because he reached out to place a hand on my shoulder. "Don't worry about them, they all just miss their families. They will get over it soon. Relax you have my full support"

I took my attention off the trail and looked back over to Bray giving him a half smile "Thanks Bray, you don't know how much it means to me for you to say that. Joanna was always the head of our tribe, I was mostly just the muscle and the loud commanding voice. I am wondering why you weren't on their side wanting to go to the city, I mean don't you miss your family? Don't you want to see your son?"

He gave me his smile that made me want to melt and then shrugged his shoulders. "I never belonged there Elia, I'm like you, I like to be a behind the scenes leader but with my tribe I was pushed into the spot light. Yes I miss them but sometimes other things take precedence over your feelings. Right now this tribe needs me more, you need me more. I'll stick with you until spring then I'll head into the city and make my way back to the mall rats, I'll see my son say hi to everyone then leave and head back here. I don't belong with the Mall Rats any more. I don't think I ever did, I feel more comfortable with you and everyone else than with the Mall Rats"

At his words my heart skipped a beat and I reached out hugging him as best as I could while walking. Even if my tribe original tribe was gone I knew that I now had a place I belonged. The only question is… was it with this group of rag tag people giving me that feeling… or was it Bray?


	5. Sunset

AN/ Alright everyone I'm starting to be glad that I don't have internet on this computer any more it's kicking me in the butt to stop surfing the web and start writing. So here it is Chapter 5 of HBH I hope you enjoy it. Like I said even if you have read this story before please read it again I'm making a lot of changes and adding more detail into areas that I just brushed over last time. Please read and review for me K?

Hope Beyond Hope

Chapter 5

Sunset

The forest loomed before my small rag tag group of a tribe and with the slowly setting sun my own personal fears were rearing their ugly heads. What would I find once I entered the forest? Would anyone from my old tribe be there? Would one of the other local tribes have moved into our land? Would stray Technos have taken over? The questions and fears were overwhelming and I found myself feeling sick with worry and yet at the same time hope. What if my tribe had reassembled already, everyone safe and sound? It would be a dream come true, but as we've all learned over the past few years there were no dreams coming true, life and death were real and no one was safe from that fact.

With a swell of determination I turned back to my small tribe and gave them a half smile "Alright everyone, we have two choices… my old camp is about an hour walk into the forest, but we only have two hours of sunlight left. We can make our way in tonight, hope that my old camp is still there and intact or we can set up camp out here tonight and then head out early in the morning."

For a few moments everyone argued back and forth before Bray got everyone's attention and then it was called to a vote. The vote was divided but the majority vote was to go into the forest tonight and hope that the camp would have survived. Once we entered the forest I could immediately see the changes that had occurred from lack of maintenance, weeds and small trees had grown up over the well worn paths that my tribe use to frequent and trees had been cut down on the outer edge. Our tribal makers were faded from lack of being renewed, it was starting to bother me that I was finding all these signs of neglect. I knew that the technos had only left the military camp two months ago but my fears were pushing that fact away from the forefront of my mind.

The only good news was that I wasn't finding any sign of a new tribe having taken over our territory, there were no new markers, no new trails and the area wasn't swarming with techo traps so some of my fears were slowly fading. Even with the decay of the paths we didn't have too much trouble navigating the forest and I knew we were getting close to the camp. The children seemed to sense my relief because they started to talk louder than the whispers that had dominated our group since the moment we had stepped foot into the forest. Even though I wanted to growl at them to be quiet I restrained myself, they were children after all. The tension was probably getting the children just as much as it was getting to me they were just dealing with it differently.

I knew that the camp was just a few feet ahead of us and was about to say something to the group when I saw something move out of the corner of my eye. I stopped in my tracks and stood still only for Jake to run into my back and nearly knock me off my feet. I whipped around letting out a soft growl and holding my finger to my lips in the universal silent motion. Everyone froze where they were and I motioned for them to stay still. I moving quietly towards where I thought I saw the movement earlier. I was almost there when I heard Lily cry out in surprise and the adults start yelling at someone to let her go. I turned around charging towards the group. They were surrounded by people and Lily was being held in a tight grasp of someone I didn't know. I let out a growl and rammed my shoulder into the man who had my niece in his grasp. He fell over with soft thud and I pried Lily from his grasp before he got up and attacked me. I struggled with him for a few moments trying to gain the upper hand but was roughly yanked off of the stranger by someone and I struggled to get away only for a familiar voice to tell me to calm down.

I stopped struggling and turned around only to see Dragon, he didn't seem to recognize me at first until I jumped on him wrapping my arms around his neck in a strangling embrace. "DRAGON! YOUR ALIVE!"

With my words the two groups stopped whatever they were doing and silence fell. I pulled back from my embrace and let him go. He looked at me for a moment before his face broke into a happy grin and he wrapped his arms around my waist swinging me around in a circle laughing. "Tigress you've safe and you came back! I'm so glad you're back, we all missed you very much"

It was then that I looked around the group, I didn't recognize very many of the people he had brought but I did see Hawk and Panther, two of my old tribe mates. Hawk was a girl my age that had joined our tribe only days before the Technos had captured us. She was a very sweet girl and always seemed to have a smile on her face. She had long brown blond hair and bright green eyes. Panther was a tall quiet man with dark brown almost black hair and brown eyes. He was one already part of the tribe when I had joined it, I knew him but we weren't very close. There were three others surrounding us but I didn't have a clue who they were, but I knew I was bound to find out soon.

I wanted to ask so many questions but it was probably best to wait to ask them. "We probably should go to the camp and get everyone settled in, I have so many questions for you and I bet you have many questions for me. Plus I would love to be introduced to the new tribe members"

Dragon readily agreed and started to lead the way back to camp. I could tell that the new tribe members were iffy about turning their backs on us but they followed Dragon back towards camp. I finally came back to earth from the clouds where my head had drifted once I realized that at least some of my tribe members were safe and back at home. I turned around and found Lily in Bray's arms, he had a sad expression on his face and it made me worried. I rushed over to him and started to inspect Lily to make sure she wasn't hurt. I found nothing wrong and my eyes shifted up to meet his. "What's wrong Bray?"

He gave me a half hearted smile and shook his head "Nothing's wrong Elia, come on we're going to be left behind if we don't hurry up"

I wanted to stop and make him tell me what was wrong but I knew that he was right. I was determined though to get him alone before the night was over and find out what was bothering him. He had become a very good friend to me, perhaps even more if I let myself even think in that direction and I wasn't about to lose whatever it is that we have because of some misunderstanding. I reached out and took Lily from his arms cuddling her close to me, glad she was alright, then reached out my free hand and grabbed Bray's leading him towards the camp because the others were already beyond our sight. I could feel tension in his grasp for a brief moment then he relaxed and followed me.

The moment I crossed into the clearing that the camp was set up in I was attacked by four females. I started to cry as I recognized who each of them were. Joanna also known as Cougar was the first to embrace me. Bray must have realized what was going on because after a moment I felt Lily being lifted from my arms. Ass soon as my hands were free I quickly embraced Cougar in a tight hug. After releasing her I moved onto Hawk and hugged the quiet but energetic female. Then I saw wolf and almost fell over. She had been a member of our tribe when I first joined but she had left a few months before the Techno's had come because she had fallen in love with a man who lived in the City. She had dark brown hair and bright brown eyes and was even shorter than me, but I loved her as a sister all the same. The final female was a shock to my system it was a friend of mine from before the Virus her name was April but apparently was now called Rabbit. I actually hadn't seen her since before the Virus but it was easy to see who she was and I squeezed the life out of her.

I was pulled into the center of the clearing where the fire pit was and everyone sat on the surrounding logs. The tribe members asked if we were hungry and once everyone replied yes they gave us each a small portion of food. I introduced everyone from my 'new' tribe and told the others what had happened at the camp. Cougar introduced us to the new members of the tribe that were present and told us about the two missing members who had apparently traveled to the city last week to get some supplies for the winter and should be back in the next few days.

Each of my previous tribe members told their tail on what had happened to them after the technos had come and of their return to the tribe. Cougar had been captured and taken to the mines, Dragon, being really good with repairing and rebuilding cars, was put to work maintaining the techno's vehicals, Hawk who was also good with machinery was also put to work for the Technos and luckily had ended up staying with Dragon the whole time. Wolf, who had moved to the city before the technos had even come, had actually been moved to the Mall Rat's city and had escaped once the Technos had fallen. With some convincing she got her husband, who was now known as Lion, to come back here to live instead of returning to the city. Rabbit, who's story was longer, apparently had been one of the Technos but when she ran into Cougar in the Mines had helped her escape, along with a few of the new tribe members. She was a 'nurse' or as close as you could get to one in this time. She had followed Joanna here because she didn't know where else to go. Panther had been 'deleted' like I had and was in a camp a little ways from here. Sadly these were the only people left of our tribe, no one else had been found or had returned.

There were five new members to our tribe, Squirrel, Mole and Eagle were the three strangers that we had come out to investigate us. Eagle was the one who I had attacked, he had been in the encampment with Panther, Squirrel was a young boy about 10 who had been one of three people in the mines with Joanna and Rabbit, as well as Mole. The two missing members were Lion, Wolf's husband and Jaguar another escape from the mines. Apparently Rabbit had been assigned to him before the technos had even invaded our territory. Ram had found him in a coma well before the invasion and had assigned Rabbit to take care of him, he had come out of coma soon afterward they had entered our territory and then, once he recovered enough, been put to work in the mines. We were warned that he had some scars on his face and hands, apparently from some type of fire and to try not to mention them, it usually upset him and he wouldn't tell anyone why.

The sun had set while we were all talking and it was easy to see that the kids were tired, Trisha and Rabbit got up ushering the kids into one of the small huts that were set up. It was then that I realized that there were some changes to the camp. We use to have nine small huts set up but only five had survived and it appeared as if they were working on rebuilding the sixth, seventh and eight. The small shack where we use to keep the food was demolished but another one had been built on the other side of camp. The fire pit was where I remembered it and I could see that a new trail had been cleared on the other side of camp which I guess is where a new bathroom had been set up. The path leading to a small hot spring, that was about ten minutes walk from the camp, was cleared again and I was glad for that, I couldn't wait to get another good bath.

The sleeping quarters had to be rearranged until we could build some more huts for everyone. The kids were given their own hut, and the rest of us would divide into groups of four. Wolf, Hawk and Rabbit would be in one hut. Dragon, Panther, Eagle and Mole would be in another. Jake, Syke, Sniper and Kale would sleep in another. Trisha would be with the kids and Cougar, Bray and I would share the final hut along with Lex and Lily because they were never away from us. The hut the kids were sharing was originally Joanna's and mine, because it was the leaders hut it was the largest. Everyone was going to their huts when I saw Dragon and Hawk lagging behind. I wanted to talk Bray but I remembered the talk we had a few days before and knew that I probably should get my talk with Dragon over with first. "Cougar, you and Bray get settled in with Lex and Lily I'll be back soon… I think I need to talk with Dragon"

She gave me a sympathetic look then nodded "Alright Tigress we'll be waiting for you in the hut."

I was curious as to her look but brushed it off. Walking over to Dragon I gave him a half smile. "Hi Dragon, um… Hawk is there any way I could talk to Dragon for a few minutes" She looked rather nervous but nodded and left. I looked up at Dragon and chewed on my lower lip. "We have to talk" we both said at the same time then chuckled.

"Dragon, would you mind if I went first? I… I mean… I'm just going to come out and say it… Dragon I think we should just be friends, I mean I love you so much but while I was away I think I came to realize that the way I loved you was more like a brother or a best friend then as anything else. I am so sorry…" The whole time I was talking I had my eyes diverted down at the ground, because of this I was shocked when I was swept up into a tight hug and a laughing Dragon was holding me.

"Tigress, you don't know how happy that makes me… not that I don't love you, but I agree, I love you as a sister or best friend… actually that's what I wanted to talk to you about. While I was with the Technos Hawk and I got really close… Um… I didn't know how to tell you that I think I've fallen in love with her. I didn't want to hurt you" I looked up and gave him a watery smile.

"Look at us… we are two fools. I'm glad that I didn't hurt you… and you didn't hurt me either. See everything works out in the end. Bray was right, I think we've all been fooling ourselves and trying to make any strong feelings we have for anyone into more than it is. We never really acted as anything more than really good friends, we just assumed that because we got along so well and had so much in common that we would be a good couple."

Dragon laughed and nodded then gave me a strange look. "Is there something going on between you and Bray? I mean when you hugged me in the forest it looked like his world had ended, it was the same look that Hawk got on her face. She was so worried that we would get back together and that it would put a stop to our tentative relationship."

I sighed and shook my head "I don't know, I mean Bray has his own relationship problems, he's married but heard through the grape vine that his wife had moved on with an ex techno, he said it isn't the first time that this has happened so he has given up on any relationship with her even if he did return to his old tribe. I really like him but I don't know if he likes me… I don't want to push my feelings onto him and just end up being his rebound relationship. I also don't want him to think that he is a rebound relationship for me either. I had realized that we were better as friends long before I started to realize I had any feelings towards Bray."

Dragon nodded and put his arm around my shoulder giving me a side hug "Perhaps you should just talk to him… tell him what you are feeling, what is in your head and in your heart" I started to laugh and he gave me a curious look "He said about the same thing when I asked him advice on telling you what was going on."

He laughed softly and squeezed my shoulder "I think I'm going to like Bray… he seems like an ok guy"

We laughed and eventually made our way back to the camp. As we came up to the huts I saw Hawk peaking out of the hut she was in and motioned for her to come out. She looked scared for a moment before quickly coming out she avoided looking me in the eye the whole time. "Hi Hawk… I'm so happy for you and Dragon, you both have my blessing… actually to tell you the truth I was thinking along the same lines as he was. We both think that we make better friends, than a couple… I wish you both all the happiness"

She looked up at me her eyes watery and then jumped up hugging me "I'm so sorry Tigress but thank you" I returned the hug and let her go turning back to Dragon and after hugging him give him a kiss on the cheek. "Take care of each other, now I'm tired and I still need to talk to Bray… good night you two, sweet dreams"

I turned leaving the two of them to their own devices and made my way to the hut. I quietly opened the cloth door and poked my head in, Lily and Lex were peacefully sleeping on what I assumed was my sleeping mat. Cougar had her back to me and I saw Bray was lying on his back with his eyes closed but his breathing wasn't steady enough for him to be asleep yet. I silently crept over to him and reached down placing my hand on his shoulder. "Bray, please meet me outside I want to talk to you for a moment" I whispered before I left the hut. I went over to the fire and sat down wondering if he would come out and meet me.

I had been waiting for ten minutes and was about to give up and just go to bed when I heard someone leave my hut and start walking towards me. I turned around and watched Bray walk over and stand just behind me. "What do you want to talk about Syberia"

It didn't slip past me that he had gone back to calling me Syberia and I felt my heart freeze up. I prayed that whatever I had done to make him so upset could still be fixed. "I talked to Dragon, he wasn't upset… actually he was relieved because apparently Hawk and Dragon got really close while they were working for the Technos. I think he plans on asking her to marry him now that he's sure it won't hurt me. She was absolutely terrified that he would leave her for me."

He seemed shocked at what I said and just stood there looking like a deer caught in headlights. I got up shyly walking over to him, my head tilted down as I stood in front of him. "Bray, why have you been acting so strange since we got here? The past few days we've gotten so close, I hope I haven't done anything to mess that up"

We stood there not a word being said for a long while before I looked up at him. He was just watching me with an unreadable expression. My expression fell and I found myself fighting back tears. "I.. I see… I'm sorry Bray, I didn't mean to do whatever I did… I'll just" I couldn't finish because I found myself gathered up in a tight embrace.

"Please Elia, don't apologize I was over reacting… I thought that… I don't know… that you and Dragon would get back together and forget about me" I snuggled into his embrace and sighed.

"I couldn't forget about you Bray, I… I really like you, probably more than I should. I know that you're probably still hurting from Amber and I just officially broke it off with Dragon but I really like you, I think I might even… I might even love you. I'm not quite sure. I just know that I like you more than I've ever liked anyone else… even Dragon. What I feel for you is so different than anything I've ever felt before." I closed my eyes not wanting to see his reaction. After everything we had talked about over the past few days I know what he would think of my declaration. Hadn't we just talked about people forcing their feelings into the mold of love even when it was just friendship. But what I found myself feeling when thinking about him was so different than what I felt when thinking about any of my friends, even Dragon. It was so much stronger and deeper.

He froze at my words and yet again a pang of pain hit my heart, what if he rejected me, everything would be so strained from here on out. I was so scared but then I felt a hand reach up and lift my chin so that I could look him in the eye. He had this shocked look on his face but it was a happy shocked look. I started to relax, but only a little, he still hadn't said anything. He leaned down slightly and placed a kiss on my forehead. "Elia, I really like you too. Only time will tell if what we feel is love but I'm willing to give it a chance."

I smiled then embraced him in a soft hug, resting my head against his chest. "Time is something we have… all winter and then some hopefully, as long as you still want to stay here with us"

He laughed and nodded putting his cheek against the top of my head and we stood like that for a few minutes before I yawned. "I think it might be time for bed Bray we can discuss this more in the morning."

He reached down taking my hand and we made our way back into the hut. When I got in I saw Cougar was still sleeping but Lex and Lily had apparently taken over my sleeping mat and didn't look like they would be moving any time soon. I was about to lie down on the floor next to them but Bray tugged my hand and instead we both curled up on his sleeping mat. It should have been strange but for some reason it just felt right, like I had come home.

AN/ I hope you all liked this chapter I'm trying to finish this story (along with all the other ones) so I can get back to writing my own without a distraction.


	6. Dusk

AN WOW 2 chapters written in 1 day I hope you all enjoy it

Hope Beyond Hope

Chapter 6

Dusk

The newly joined tribe was quickly settling in, we were all working together to try to finish up the three huts, one which we were trying to make larger so that the kids would have plenty of room and they could all stay together. Hopefully we could have the three new huts up in the next two few days, that would bring the grand total up to 8 and only two people would have to share a hut, which seeing as many of us were coupling up it worked out. Apparently even Cougar had found someone. She told me that she getting close to Jaguar and couldn't wait until he returned. Now I couldn't wait to meet up with this Jaguar, I had to approve of him to date my best friend.

We all worked hard and soon the two tribes melded into one. It was strange because half of the tribe went by animal names while the other half still used their previous names but we were getting use to it. Besides more than half of the people that came with me were going to leave once winter was over. Lily, Lex and Checkers planned on staying but the others were going to leave with the adults and look for their old tribes or parents. Trista already agreed to help Kitty and Darien since they didn't want to stay. Out of the adults only Bray was staying for sure. Trista said that she might return after helping all the kids find where they belong but she wasn't sure.

After two days we had finished the huts and were about to start relaxing when a bird call was heard through camp and Cougar seemed to perk up. "There back! Tigress come on they will need to meet you, I've told Jaguar so much about you and Wolf has told Lion just about as much"

She grabbed my arm and started to drag me towards the direction that we had heard the bird call, I looked back giving Bray a help me look. He chuckled but thankfully followed us out of the clearing to meet up with the two returning tribe members. They probably needed an extra hand brining the supplies through the forest anyway.

We made our way towards the meeting point and Cougar let out a low bird call to tell the others that we were coming. We walked for about half a mile before seeing anyone. Lion was waiting on us but when he saw there were two apparent strangers instead of tribe mates he seemed to stiffen up. "Hi Lion, this is Tigress, my co leader, she returned while you guys were gone and brought with her a few strays that are going to be staying with us until winter is over."

We all laughed and I reached out taking Bray's hand dragging him forwards "This is Bray, he's one of the so called strays… but hopefully he'll stick around after winter and join our tribe"

Lion laughed and nodded "I've heard a lot about you Tigress, it is good to meet my wife's best friend. All of the new members were constantly hearing about our other leader so it's great to finally put a face to a name. As for Bray, well it's good to have another male member added to our tribe! Jaguar is at the forest edge with the supplies, we have a wagon but there is no way we can get it through the trees so we are going to have to carry it, the five of us should be enough I think"

We started through the forest and Lion seemed to keep looking back at Bray… finally Bray seemed to notice and asked him why. "You just look so familiar… I don't think we've ever met but you look like someone I know… but I can't figure out whom"

Bray and Lion talked trying to find out why he looked so familiar to him but they couldn't figure it out. Finally we got to the forest edge and I noticed someone standing by a wagon that had lots of items stacked on top. I was the first out of the forest and I made my way towards him with Cougar just a few steps behind me "You must be Jaguar, I'm Tigress, Cougars's friend and Co-leader"

I think I startled him because he jumped about a foot in the air then whirled around. He calmed down once he saw Cougar and what I said seemed to register. He nodded "I've heard so much about you, I am glad you made it back safely. Where is Lion?"

I laughed "He's lagging behind talking to Bray, one of the people that I brought back with me" when I looked up at Jaguar he seemed to be standing stiff as a board. I was wondering why until I heard Bray behind me "Mar… Martin?!?! But… your dead! I saw you die!"

I was totally clueless as I looked back and forth between Bray and Jaguar. But it was then that I saw it they looked so much alike. Like… Brothers! But… Bray said that Zoot had died. I had heard the rumors that Zoot was dead… I also heard the rumors that he lived but that had turned out to be a hoax, but as I looked at Jaguar I could see him being Zoot. His hair was buzzed not long like I remember the picture showing and he had some faint scars on his face and hands that changed his appearance a bit but it was undeniably Zoot! Why hadn't Cougar or someone said something.

"Your Zoot, I mean you're Bray's brother!" I gasped out still looking between the two men.

Jaguar looked stunned but quickly walked towards Bray reaching out towards him. "I was hurt I wasn't dead but I almost did die, apparently the Technos found me and got me healthy again. When they were disbanded Cougar and Rabbit brought me back here. I had thought of going back to the city but I while I was working in the minds I heard people talking about Zoot and it made me realize that even if I went back and found you and Trudy someone would want me to go back to being Zoot and I made up my mind that night that I didn't want to be Zoot any more… I wanted to be Martin so I stayed here"

Bray walked up to Jaguar and embraced him in a strong hug, after releasing him he gave him a smile. "I know how you feel Martin, I missed you and Trudy missed you but I'm just glad you're alive. Although you probably should at least go back to the city and see your daughter. Brady should at least get the chance to meet her father"

I chuckled softly but cleared my throat "Alright, this family reunion is great, and I'm really happy for both of you but we probably should get the supplies back to camp. We can all catch up along the way but we have a lot to carry and not a lot of time to get it back."

They all agreed and we each gathered as much as we could, luckily the five of us were able to carry all the supplies, but the trek back to the camp was slow going. It gave the brothers a chance to catch up. Martin was happy to hear that Bray was a dad, but once Bray went on to tell him about Amber moving on and that he had also decided to move on, at which time he glanced over to me. Martin seemed to put two and two together sending me a sweet smile. When we finally made it back to camp everyone came over to relieve us of our burden and the final introductions were done. We left out that Jaguar was Zoot but everyone was told that Jaguar was Bray's brother, apparently no one accept for a select few people knew that Zoot was Bray's brother so that secret was safe, and with the hair cut and no face paint he didn't look like Zoot at all.

Lily and Lex quickly took to Jaguar and were climbing all over him calling him 'Uncle Jaguar" which made Martin look between us as if asking if the kids were ours but I laughed and quickly explained that they were my niece and nephew and that for some reason they had dubbed Bray their uncle and apparently made the assumption that if Bray was their uncle so was Martin. He just laughed and played with the kids. After everything was put away and the sleeping arrangements were sorted out we all settled down by the fire to eat dinner and share stories. I wanted to pull Bray aside and see how he was taking this but he was too absorbed with catching up with his brother and I didn't want to interrupt him. Perhaps we could talk in the morning.

As night fell I gathered up Lex and Lily and made my way back towards one of the other huts. The hut we had stayed in the past few nights was Joanna's and tonight Jaguar would be staying with her. We were going to claim the smaller new hut as ours so I gathered up some blankets and sleeping mats then set up the hut. We were sleeping when Bray must have come in.

AN Again I say 2 chapters in one day don't you just love me!


	7. Moon Rise

AN/ Wooot Woot I'm on a roll, gonna finish up all my dang stories so I can enjoy writing what's most important my Original story that might just make me lots of money! Alright everyone read, review and watch! I know a lot of you are noticing that I play musical names. The names I call people depends on the company they are around.

Tigress/Syberia/Elia -she goes by Tigress around most of the original tribe, Syberia (use to) around the encampment group now they are calling her Syberia, and Elia when around Bray/Joanna/Lily/Lex and Martin

Joanna/Cougar- everyone calls her Cougar except for Elia. Bray and Martin sometimes will call her Joanna but most of the time refers to her as Cougar

Zoot/Martin/Jaguar- Never goes by Zoot anymore but Elia thought of him as Zoot until Bray called him Martin. He goes by Martin around Bray, Joanna and Elia. Everyone else calls him Jaguar.

I also noticed I haven't mentioned the Tribes Name we are the Forest Hallows Tribe Just an FYI if you see that name pop up somewhere

Hope Beyond Hope Chapter 7

Moon Rise

Even though the sun had just broke over the horizon the forest was still dark, it would take a good twenty minutes until the light would pierce the thick foliage. For some reason I hadn't been able to sleep the night before, most of the night I spent tossing and turning until I had finally got up and came out here to relax and reflect. I would be tired today but perhaps tonight I should be able to sleep better. What had kept me up most of the night were Bray's words. Were these feelings really love, or did I yet again just over impose the need for love over the feelings. I was going crazy worrying about it, neither of us needed to be hurt again.

It was during these crazy thoughts that I remembered a conversation that I had with my grandma when I got my first crush.

~Flash back~

A young girl of 8 sat at the kitchen counter kicking her feet playing with one of her bright blond pigtails. "Mammaw Jewel how do you know if you love someone?"

The older woman laughed quickly. She got a soft smile on her face before going about the process of gather up 2 dishes and getting a box of ice cream out of the freezer. After dishing out the bowls and getting out two spoons she gave one to the girl and then took a bite of her ice cream. "Love, why do you ask lele? You have a crush on some boy?"

Elia frowned and tilted her head "Crush? What's a crush mammaw? Is that like love? How do you know if you have a crush?" The little girl started rambling off questions between bites of ice cream.

Jewel chuckled and waited a few minutes until the girl stopped then answered "A crush Lele is when you like someone… love is so much more. You can crush on a lot of boys but you will only ever love one person. The person you love is your soul mate"

Elia bit her lower lip ignoring the melting bowl of ice cream sitting in front of her as she took in her grandma's words. "How will I know that I love someone and don't just have a crush on them?"

Jewel sighed and seemed to sink into a memory for a few minutes. "When you love someone you can't imagine your life without them. Even if you try to imagine a future with them gone nothing appears. Every moment you are with them you treasure when you are apart you count the seconds until you are back together. You never want to lose them but you would do anything for them to see them happy, even if it means letting them go, although you will fight tooth claw and nail before you let it get to that point. Although you get along you do get into fights but you are willing to bend and give a little so that you can both be happy. If they aren't happy then you aren't happy. One phrase sums it up best… You would be lost without them."

The little girl giggled and finally went back to her ice cream "But Mammaw… momma always told me that you have to be indepen… indepen… Independent! Enough to take care of yourself… you shouldn't need a man to be happy"

Jewel reached out touching the end of the little girls nose. "You don't need them to be happy… you want them to be around to be happy. Be independent make your own choices Lele… never let anyone, even someone you love, force you to do something you don't want to, or let them hurt you just because you love them. There are bad people out there Lele never forget that, and god forbid if you should find yourself falling in love with someone like that then get away. But if they love you back as much as you love them then they won't ever hurt you or allow you to be hurt."

The little girl nodded and finished off her ice cream before getting all serious and looking at he grandma "Mammaw Jewel, I think I have a crush. I don't want to have a crush though, I want to be in love."

~End Flash Back~

As I recalled my grandmother's words I found tears rolling down my face, the memories of my family had faded over the years, even now Mammaw Jewels face was blurred along the edges and I had trouble remembering the color of her eyes or the exact shade of brown her hair was. Had it started graying yet or was she still young enough in that memory to still have her rich brown color? But even though the visual aspect of the memory had faded her words were still solid in my mind. She was the reason I didn't date until after the Virus… when I was in middle school I wasn't like all the other girls who dated every person they had a crush on. I actually never dated because I was always looking for love, not lust or crushes.

Perhaps that is why I was so easy to fool into making myself believe that my friendship with Dragon was love, because I so desperately wanted the love mammaw had talked about. Yet now as I compare the feelings I felt for Dragon and the feelings I've started feeling for Bray I could easily see the difference. The memory also helped me sort through my feelings for Bray. As I searched my memories I was surprised to find that every day since the moment he came to the technos encampment I had been by his side. I had nursed him back to health. I had even slept next to him to make sure he made it through the night. After that I had spent most of my time split between Lily and Bray. But even when I was with Lily I was constantly searching for him or telling Lily made up stories referencing him as the Hero so that Lily would be able to associate a character with a face.

When I had problems or worries I automatically went to him for advice or just to feel his strength. When I thought of him leaving me to return to his tribe I felt the world fall out from under me, heck I can't even imagine what I would do without him here to lean on or confide in. My friendship with Cougar and Dragon wouldn't replace the hole that would form in my heart. It was with an audible gasp that I came back from that depressing train of thought. I really and truly did love Bray. I knew I would walk to the ends of the earth to follow him, even if he left my tribe at the end of the winter I know I would go with him.

The light of day was finally peaking through the canopy when I got up to start my morning routine. The dried tear stains on my face needed to be washed away before anyone could see them. Since I was the first one up it was my job to start the fire so I started that process as well.

I had just gotten the fire roaring when the first people started getting up for the morning. Cougar was the first one up followed by Martin and Bray. I had just finished gathering up the supplies for a trip to the hot springs when the others came out of their huts. I smiled up at Cougar and nodded my head towards my arms "Joanna, come join me at the hot springs! I need a good long soak and I think we have months worth of catching up to do little sister"

She let out a girly giggle, a rarity heard from both of us, and turned back to get her own bathing supplies. As she came out she stopped and looked at both of the boys. "You boys can come to if you want. We built a dividing wall for privacy in the middle of the hot spring, just like they use to do in Japan! It was Tigress' idea so that if someone wanted privacy they could have it." She was mostly addressing Bray but she didn't want to make him feel ill informed.

Martin chuckled and nodded "I know it would be good to get the road dirt off of my skin and Bray I can smell you from clear over here, if you don't bathe soon I think even your little tigress and her cubs won't be able to stand your smell" Bray let out a cough and even from across the clearing I could see a slight blush creeping into his cheeks.

"Alright go get your stuff you two, we'll wait on you. But Martin you can call me Elia and Joanna… I swear if you don't remember to call me Elia in private I'll have your hide. We were friends before the virus and the four of you, along with my 'cubs' are the only ones aloud to call me that. I don't know about all of you but the occasional reminder about who we were before the virus is a good thing" Bray and Martin went into the huts and gathered there own bathing supplies, Martin quickly came out but Bray took longer. When he finally came out he had two 'cubs' following him and they were also caring their own bathing supplies.

"Hum… well then looks like our grand total is 6 perhaps we should get moving before our numbers rise again" they all agreed and we started down the long trail that would take us to the hot spring. Lily, being the energetic child she was, quickly bound over to Martin and climbed him until he was forced to carry her. "Uncle Jaguar, Uncle Bray talked about his niece in many of his stories… is she your daughter? How old is she? Can I meet her? Is she my cousin?" Martin seemed shocked and didn't seem quite sure how to answer but finally after no one else would answer for him he finally seemed to settle on some answers.

"Yes Brady is my daughter and she's your age but I haven't seen her since she was a really little baby, she lives with her mommy and yes after I go to the city to visit with her maybe either she can come back here and visit or we can take you to the city and you can visit with her." She seemed content with that answer because she leaned up giving him a loud kiss on the cheek before struggling to get down then scampering over to Bray and then climbed up him. This apparently was Lex's signal to run over to Martin and climb him like a monkey.

Lucky for Martin Lex didn't ask questions, he was just content to force the older male to carry him. While the two grown men were dealing with the kids Joanna and I were quietly catching up. Apparently most of the tribe had known about Dragon and Hawk since the moment they returned. They had tried to hide their affection from Joanna but she was too good at reading people. Joanna wouldn't give them their approval but she did admit to drilling Dragon for hours about his feelings for Hawk and his feelings for me. She had concluded that the poor boy really did love Hawk and had finally given them a half hearted approval. She knew me, she knew my every thought and emotion and she knew that I would understand. She knew I would not want him to wait on me forever.

I gave her a reassuring sideways hug and told her that she had made the right choice. I wouldn't have wanted Dragon to suffer waiting on me. I wanted true love and true love can only happen if both parties feel unbreakable love. My eyes drifted back towards the boys and my heart melted when I saw both of the boys playing with the children, they would both be wonderful fathers. "Joanna I have to ask you something and I want you to answer truthfully. If Martin goes to the city and decides to stay so he can be with his daughter what will you do?"

Joanna paled and looked back towards the them. "I… I'm sorry Elia I would stay with him. I know that the tribe needs me, that you need me, but I wouldn't be complete without him"

I laughed softly bumping my shoulder against hers playfully "And I'm sorry to say if Bray wanted to stay with his son I would do the same thing. I know that the tribe needs me, that you need me, but he's my other half, just like Martin is your other half"

She looked at me, her jaw dropping, then back at the boys then finally back at me. "Elia… I knew you liked him but are you serious? You're not just using him to help yourself get over Dragon are you?"

I growled at her my eyes narrowing. "You know me better then that Joanna. I made a mistake with Dragon, I was craving love… I missed my family and Dragon was there, he loved me, in my confusion I didn't see that the love was brotherly love. If anyone was a rebound it was Dragon, I was rebounding from the loss of my family. This morning I remembered something my Mammaw Jewel told me. She told me that the best way to know if you love someone is best summed up in one phrase… you would be lost without them. That's how I feel about Bray… that's how you feel about Martin. When I was away from Dragon my mind dealt with it. I survived and to tell you the truth after a few days I barely thought about him. But with Bray even the thought of him being out of my life even for a short time makes me feel lost and I feel like I've fallen into a black hole."

She got all misty eyed and stopped walking to embrace me in a tearful hug. The boys seemed lost at what had happened to make us act like that but we both just laughed and finished the trek to the hot spring. Lily, Joanna and I climbed into our half of the hot spring and Bray, Martin and Lex on theirs.

We could hear each other over the low wall, it only stood 3ft above the water and went 3 ft under water, the water was 3 ft deep in the shallow part and 5 ft deep in the middle so if someone really wanted to they could swim under the wall but most respected each other's privacy.

The little kids were having fun trying to climb over the wall to see who was on the other side but the rest of us just used the time to get clean using a little soap that the tribe made during the spring. After we were clean we just ended up floating and relaxing in the warm waters. Luckily this water stayed warm enough that it never froze in the winter but if you wanted to bathe then you would have to make a fire beside the spring, bathe quickly then dry of and cuddle up to the fire until your hair was dry as well.

We finished bathing then got and got dressed. Before the Technos Joanna and I use to brush each other's hair out because it was so long. So when I got out I was prepared to continue that age old tradition yet before I could even offer to brush her hair out Martin had already taken the brush from her and set about removing her tangles and helping her hair to dry. While he was doing that she called Lily over and used a comb to brush out her hair. I was left to my own devices and felt a little left out until I felt the brush being lifted from my hand by Bray. "Turn around Elia"

I blushed but did as he said my eyes drifting to Martin and Joanna only to see them both giving me a devilish look… we had been set up, this was planned but I can't say that I was all that upset. Bray was very careful and quickly had all the tangles removed. I reached around and took the brush from him then brushed out his long hair. After finishing that I started to braid the seven braids that he had worn since the day I met him. But after I had braided only five he reached up stopping me "Five is enough"

I gave him a questioning look and he looked away. "After my parents and grandparents died I started braiding my hair, one strand for each love one lost. When I thought Martin died I added a fifth, then when I thought that I had lost Amber and my son I added my sixth and seventh. But now that I know that Martin is alive I don't need the one for him, and I don't need one for Amber, she's not lost nor do I love her. I will keep the one for my son until I find him again."

It was a shock but I just nodded wondering what to do with the extra hair, he quickly solved that question by reaching into his pocket and pulling out a small pocket knife handing it to me. I pulled the long hair taught and cut it so it would be the same length as the rest of his hair. After doing that I handed him the strands and the knife but didn't get up. "Can I ask you a question though? You've been wearing the braid for Amber even after you found out from that Ellie girl that she had moved on. Why stop wearing it now?"

He took the hair that I had given him and seemed to be playing with it before he finally answered me "Because, now I have someone that I truly love right with me, I don't need a reminder of the past"

I leaned up putting my forehead against his. "That is really sweet Bray"

A throat clearing behind us and brought us back from the lala land we had apparently been in. When we looked up no one was there, apparently Joanna and Martin had taken the kids back to the camp, clearing their throat before leaving. I looked back at Bray and laughed "Sorry come on Bray let's make our way back to the camp"

I started to get up but a hand on my shoulder stopped me, I turned to ask Bray what he needed but Bray's lips stopped me from voicing that question. All trains of thought quickly left me as I reached up wrapping my arms around his neck drawing him closer. His lips were cracked from the early winter winds, as were mine I suspect, but the main thing I noticed was the unique taste of him. The subtle hints of apple and meat were the major 'flavors' of his kiss because that was the staple of our diets but a honey undertone was present that was all him. I know because honey was a rarity even in the forest and would be worth more than its weight in gold right now. His kisses were soft and a little damp but nothing overly drooly as some of the few innocent kisses I had shared over the years.

We finally broke apart but our foreheads still remained touching as we panting softly trying to catch our breath. I could feel my heart hammering in my chest and couldn't resist letting my hand fall from his shoulder sliding down his chest until it rested over his heart. This caused him to shutter slightly and I smirked in response. His heart was beating faster than normal almost in time with my own. Using my free hand I reached for his free hand and placed it over my own heart. "Bray, if what I feel for you isn't love, than I don't want to feel it, if I felt anything more than this it would surely kill me."

He pulled his forehead back from mine than tilted his head up to kiss the tip of my nose, then kissed down my face until he reached my ear "Elia, I couldn't have said it better myself."

His breath sent shivers down my spine and my breath left my body. I wanted to pounce on him, pin him to the ground and kiss him from head to toe but instead I just sat there breathless and speechless with what probably was a goofy grin on my face, but that's something I probably never want to find out. He smirked "Elia, I would love to sit here all day but the tribe is probably wondering where we are, and I would like for us to spend some time with my brother"

I wanted to protest but I knew he was right so I reached up and pulled him down for one last lingering kiss before we would leave the hot spring. As our lingering lips separated I opened my eyes and waited until he had done the same with a soft smile I took a breath. "I love you Bray, there is absolutely no doubt in my mind or heart"

He smiled and after a long sweet kiss pulled back "I love you too Elia, nothing could keep me away from you"

We reluctantly got up and started back towards camp hand in hand the whole way.

The camp was in an uproar when we returned and Joanna was in the middle trying to play referee but failing because she was surrounded by so many loud voices. That is why we were co-leaders, Joanna was the decision maker and I was the person who made it happen. With a loud growl I reluctantly released Bray's hand and let out a loud roar. It was a sound that shocked all the new comers and had the old tribe members standing at attention. The sound was strange coming from my short compact form but it was effective, better then yelling or so I had found out many years ago. "Good… now what is all this ruckus about and why, prey tell, were you not listening to Cougar who is one of the tribe leaders and has the final say in any argument"

Again the bickering started but this time all I had to do was let out a growl before everyone went quiet. My eyes darted around the group before I sighed and looked at Joanna. I gave her a smile then nodded my head towards her "Cougar would you like to clarify for me, and then perhaps we, as the leaders, can sort this mess out"

Didn't look back at Bray even though my mind was screaming that I just wanted to hold onto his hand, but as a co-leader the only person that the tribe should see me leaning on is Joanna so I made my way over and waited for her to brief me on the situation.

Apparently while Bray and I were gone Panther and Jake had gotten into a fight. Jake didn't think that he should have to help on restoring the camp. His reasoning was that he wasn't a member of the tribe and never was going to be a member of the tribe. Panther on the other hand believed that if Jake was going to be staying here this winter then he needed to have an equal share of work and pull his weight while he was still here.

I reached up rubbing my temples for a moment before turning back to everyone "Jake, Panther you two stay right where you are. Everyone else, get back to what you were doing, I swear if I hear a word from any of you then I'm assigning extra chores and giving you out house duty for a week"

With those words everyone scattered. Martin and Bray stood in the shadows trying to look busy but constantly watching what was going on to make sure that things didn't get out of hand. First I drew my attention to Panther because he was a true member of our Tribe. "Panther, you have been a member of this Tribe for a long time. You were here before the Technos came. You know our policy about coming to us if you have a problem and not just confronting someone. We live in to tight of a space to always be fighting with each other. Everyone has their own opinion but when an opinion differs it is up to Cougar and I to have the final say. Next time bring up your concerns with US FIRST! Do you understand?"

Even though Panther was a good foot taller than me and probably outweighed me by a good eighty pounds he looked taken back and ashamed of his actions "Yes I understand. Tigress, I apologize for my rash behavior and for causing a scene. I am sorry Cougar for giving you trouble and for not bringing my problem up to you before confronting Jake"

I nodded my head showing my acceptance of his apology and Joanna did the same. With a dismissive nod he left and our attention was drawn to Jake who seemed smug about Panther's dismissal and reprimand. My eyes shifted to the spoiled rotten kid who had somehow sailed through the hardships that had occurred since the Virus disrupted our world.

My tribe leader façade dropped and I stalked up to him poking him in the chest. Jake was right, he wasn't a member of my tribe so my right to command him was limited. It was with this in mind I decided that he needed put in his place and because I was the one that brought him here it was my job to do so. "I swear Jake, if you don't get your head out of the ground and start pulling your weight around here, you're going to find yourself stranded beyond the bounds of our tribal land and exiled. Tribe member or not while you are staying here you will follow our rules and that includes helping to fortify the camp. We aren't the only people around here, there are other tribes and various strays that would give anything to steal our winter supplies, supplies that you will need to get through this winter. So either get off your pampered lazy butt and do your assigned portion of work or get out. Those are your ONLY two choices."

He gulped but still had that stubborn look on his face "I shouldn't have to do as much, I'm not part of your tribe. Why should I work my tail off just so you can all have the sweet life after I've left?"

I reached up grabbing his shirt collar and pulled him down to my eye level, he squeaked in protest but then I gave him a violent jerk down so that his head was lower than mine. I bared my teeth at him much like a dog would do and snarled. "Because, we never do anything that isn't needed immediately, do you want to sleep under a leaky roof in the middle of winter, or have stray animals getting into our food supply while you sleep? I will say this one last time… your ONLY two choices are to either do your portion of the work or leave. I've exiled someone before and I will do it again if I have to. Winter is only days away are you going to risk making it into town before the snow comes or are you going to just shut up and obey for a few short months?"

Jake seemed to contemplate my words for a few minutes before his prissy bubble popped and he realized that I wasn't bluffing. I would kick his sorry behind into the snow if he didn't do as I said and even though I wasn't as big as he was, I had the back up to do it. "Fine Tigress I'll do whatever you guys tell me to do"

I jerked his collar so that he was looking at Joanna "You have something to say to her"

He seemed to realize that it wasn't just me who would kick his behind to the curb but Cougar as well. "I am sorry Cougar for not listening to you and for causing such a fuss"

It was a half hearted apology but I pushed him away and let it be, it was enough for now. "This is your only warning Jake, if you act up again it doesn't matter what time of the year it is, we'll escort you to the edge of the woods without a second word, give you a blanket and a knife then point you in the direction of the city and let you go. We'll stand guard and block your re-entry into the forest. So keep that in mind if you want to try and argue your way out of an honest days work"

He quickly scrambled away and I turned back to Joanna sighing and running a hand through my now damp hair. She reached up and gave me a tight hug laughing softly. "Man Tigress I missed you, I am not as loud and boisterous as you are, I've always had trouble getting them to listen to me or getting their attention"

I smirked and returned the hug "That little sister is why we are the perfect team. You're the brains of this operation and I'm the brawn. We make the perfect leader as long as we are together. Now I just hope I haven't scared off the love of my life with my grunts and growls. Joanna what if he thinks I'm strange because of that little show?"

Joanna shook her head laughing and pointed to the shadows behind me. I turned around to see Martin and Bray with amazed looks on their faces. I sheepishly walked towards them playing with the tips of my hair and chewing on my lower lip. "Eh…"

Martin started laughing at that point and reached out slapping his large hand against my back "I was wondering how my quiet little kitten could be the leader of a tribe dominated by men, but I think I've finally found out. You are great! You know how to threaten someone without actually doing damage. Wow Bray I think you got a feisty one on your hands"

I blushed but took the complement. "I've learned a lot from the military, sometimes you have to get up close and personal but if you go too far and start doing damage then they stop respecting your authority and start fearing the pain you can cause them."

He nodded his eyes seeming thoughtful for a second but then he brushed it off. The past was just that, and none of us would change a thing, if we did then we wouldn't be here, together.

I reluctantly turned my attention to Bray and found him seeming to be reappraising me. "Elia that was brilliant, although I think you might have burst an ear drum with that roar of yours but it was effective. You and Joanna make a good team, you balance each other out. You make effective threats that motivate people to comply with your wishes without threatening bodily harm. You did a great job" With that he leaned down and gave me a quick kiss before leaning back and then looking over at the other two.

I let out a loud sigh of relief then got back to business "Alright Joanna I think it's about time to hold a tribe meeting. We need to set ground rules for all of the visitors, tell all the new comers our old and new rules and refresh the memory of the old members for the rules. We also need to start the official initiation of the new tribe members so they can receive their tribal names. We probably should come up with an official choir list and rotation so that there will be no more disputes about who is supposed to do what"

She laughed and playfully punched me in the shoulder "And you said I was the brains of this outfit… I think you would do fine as a solo leader if you just put your mind to it"

I yelped and pretended to freak out "NO! Don't saddle me with all the work! That's why I have you so that you can do all the paper work and be the face of our leadership… I'm just the muscle… I don't want to think!"

The others just laughed and I felt Bray's arms come up around me in a supportive hug. I let out a sigh and shook my head "We should get to work, you boys are welcome to join us but we'll put you to work doing something. Or you can perhaps go out foraging for some food while we do all the hard leadership stuff."

Bray and Martin pretended to argue back and forth before they decided to go work on the encampment as the boys started to walk away I called out after them "Bray, if you want to stay you better pick out a tribe name"

Joanna and I spend the rest of the day crunching numbers and trying to come up with a balanced work chart for the tribe so that no one would have any major complaints. We even set up a rotation for watching the kids so that Trista wouldn't always be saddled with the rambunctious kids day in and day out. By the time night came we were both mentally exhausted but ready for the gathering. Luckily Martin and Bray had passed on the word and everyone, including the children, was sitting quietly around the fire leaving 2 spots at the 'head of the fire' open for us. On one side sat Bray and on the other sat Martin so that we could have the support of our loved one.

"Alright everyone I think we need to go over a few things and clarify some others. First are the rules of the tribe, which apply to everyone. These rules are simple, no fighting, no taking from the food storage unless you are preparing the meal, do your assigned tasks and if you have extra time offer your help to someone else, such as with the kids. If you have any problems bring them directly to either Cougar or me. Do not take it up with anyone else. If Cougar or I ask you to do something, do it with no questions. We have the final say, though we will try to be fair. If you injure a member of this tribe than you will be put on trial and there will be only two options of verdict, guilty and exiled or self defense and you will be dealt a punishment depending on the crime, there is no innocent unless you didn't do anything then well we find who did and they will be punished accordingly. I don't want to say it but if a death occurs then there will be no option either you will be innocent or you will be exiled with a permanent mark showing your rank as a murderer"

I stopped and looked over to Cougar because the next bit was hers "Next is the problem that not all of you are tribe members. As long as you stay with us then you will follow ALL the rules, no if ands or buts. Once you decide to leave then you can be relieved of those duties but until that point you will obey us. For now Tigress and I are your tribe leaders you will address us as such and listen to both of us. This tribe is based off of many animal groups and as such we have ranking. Tigress and I are considered Alphas or leaders, Jaguar is our second in command because we don't want more than two 'leaders' at a time. If we are indisposed and he is available then he is who you would go to. Dragon and Hawk are our third in command. If for some reason Tigress, Jaguar and I are indisposed or gone they are in charge until our return. Panther and Rabbit are next followed by Wolf and Lion and finally Eagle and Mole. If you haven't noticed most leadership groups are in pairs. As someone's spouse or if we are still following animal terms Mate you share their rank. Most people work best with their spouse. Spouses tend to complement each other so this is why we have done this. If you wish to join our tribe then you will follow in line. When you join there is a mix of things that will determine your rank; age, leadership experience and how well you obey rules will be factored in but for a while you will be at the bottom of the food chain."

We went on for another half an hour about little rules that applied to people of different rank and more rules before we finally got around to the point of the initiation of the new members.

"We have a lot of people here right now but this is the time I want to ask anyone who wishes to remain with the tribe after the winter as passed to stay while everyone else is dismissed please leave the area" Many of my rag tag team left only leaving Bray, Trista, Checkers, Lex and Lily. I looked at Trista questioningly and she gave me a sweet smile "I promised the kids to make sure they got home but I don't have anywhere else to go. I want to come back as soon as they have found their families"

I smiled and nodded before motioning for the five to sit in the five seats to my right. Then I looked up at the Tribe and motioned for the five new members, (Lion, Eagle, Mole, Rabbit and Jaguar) to sit in the seats to Joanna's left leaving Wolf, Hawk, Dragon and Panther sitting in the middle directly across from Joanna and me. "Our numbers are a bit odd, six old members to five new and five only partially initiated members. Usually when a new member joins we ask for someone to be their sponsor but seeing as our numbers are off I will make an exception for the partially initiated members. You have all been here long enough to understand how the tribe functions and should not need someone to guide you. As for the five new members I will ask for sponsors, only old members are allowed to sponsor new members mind you. We will start with the children. Lily please come over here."

My small niece got up and trotted over to me facing the audience until I reached down turning her around. "Who will claim the girl once called Lily as their initiate?"

Joanna smiled and stepped forward "I will Tigress"

I smiled thankfully at my sister and she moved so that she was standing next to Lily and facing me. "Leader Cougar, with accepting this initiate as your responsibility, to teach and guide her in the ways of the tribe as well as in the ways of the wild. Teach her to hunt, fish and forage, but also teach her the structure of leadership and of our culture. Now that you know the responsibilities are you still willing to accept?"

Joanna was serious when she replied the affirmative. It was then that I turned my attention to the little girl in front of me "Seeing as you are still rather young and I am the only family you have here I will help you pick your tribal name… because of your spirit and size you will be known from now on as Lynx. A Lynx is a small cat with a big heart, they are protective of their loved ones and despite their size they pack a powerful punch."

Lily beamed at me and nodded her head vigorously "Welcome to our tribe Lynx take your seat with the full pack members"

As she returned to her seat I turned my attention to Lex "Lexington please come up here"

My nephew marched over to me acting like he was a military soldier and I restrained a laugh. "Who will claim the boy once called Lexington as their initiate?"

To my surprise it was Dragon who stood up and walked forward to join us in front of the tribe. "Dragon, with accepting this initiate you will take on the responsibility to teach and guide him in the ways of the tribe as well as in the ways of the wild. Teach him to hunt, fish and forage, but also teach him the structure of leadership and of our culture. Now that you know the responsibilities are you still willing to accept?"

Dragon replied the affirmative and I turned my attention to Lex "Just like your sister it is my job to help you with your new tribal name. You my young nephew are brave and strong. You protect those you love and what you believe is yours. Because of this you will be known from now on as Bear. A bear is a large strong creature that also knows when to be loving and soft."

Lex smiled and lunged forward quickly hugging my leg before returning to Dragon's side. "Welcome to our tribe Bear, take your seat with the full pack members"

Next was Checkers who Panther claimed as his sponsor. He wanted to be called Monkey and so because he was older and had no family that is what he got assigned as his name though Panther didn't seem to excited about that.

Trista came next and Hawk decided to be her sponsor. Trista let Hawk chose her name and because of her love for birds she suggested that Trista be called Dove because of her love for children and peace.

Finally Bray was up and I turned to Joanna "Cougar I wish to be the Sponsor of Bray so you will have to perform the ceremony" she nodded before we switched spots.

"Will the initiate once called Bray please step forward, Tigress you have already voiced your choice to sponsor this initiate so we shall move on. Tigress as this initiates sponsor you are required to teach and guide him in the ways of our tribe as well as the wild. Teach him the rules of our tribe as well as any skills he might be lacking. Now that you know the responsibilities are you still willing to accept?"

I replied the affirmative and then we both turned our attention to Bray "Bray as a full grown adult you can claim your own name, but if you should wish to pass that responsibility on then it will be given to Jaguar because he is your relative and a member of our tribe, what is your choice"

Bray looked between the three of us before looking back at Joanna "I chose to be called Leopard to honor my brother's choice of a spotted cat"

We all chuckled softly but nodded "Then welcome to our Tribe Leopard please be seated with the other tribe members"

With the partially initiated members of the tribe we did a vote for full initiation, not a single ne was said and finally everyone who wanted to be part of the tribe was a full member accepted by everyone and had an official tribal name. By the time the final member, Jaguar, was voted in it was nearing midnight and we were all exhausted. Lily and Lex were sleeping on Martin and Bray's lap even checkers who had been a night owl was falling asleep against Trista's shoulder.

We finally dismissed everyone and we all made our way towards our huts. Lily and Lex were put in with the other children for the night so that we could all get a good nights sleep. Bray and I finally made our way into our hut and after pulling our sleeping mats together we laid down and quickly fell asleep tired for the days events.

AN/ YES I made up the whole braid number thing but that was one thing I always noticed about Bray. Through out the series no matter the make up or costume change he never went without his braids. Never really noticed how many but I just wanted to add that little tid bit into my story because I personally use to do that. When my great grandma died I braided a chunk of my hair for months on end to help me remember her. When my friend died I did the same thing and when 2 of my friends went missing I had 2 braids until we found them again.

Hey everyone you won't believe this but as I was writing this chapter I started to think that I was making Bray way to ooc and mushy but when I went back and found some Bray/Amber Bray/Dannie relationship scenes and to my surprise I found that up to this point I had been making him almost to quiet and not romantic enough. It has been too long since I last watched the Tribe seeing as it doesn't air any more in my area. I tend to forget that The Tribe is pretty much a soap opera for teenagers. I'm glad to say that Bray is NOT out of character in this chapter. The goey gushy man is how he was written. My character is more 'romantic' then I typically am but well I'm trying to follow along the lines of 'the tribe' romances.

Yes I can roar IRL I can mimic a cougars roar so if you want to know what it sounds like Google a cougar roar.

When I first started watching The Tribe I had this Big crush on Lex and his bad boy self. I thought Bray was sexy and all but I thought 'he's too much of a nice guy for me' well if you compare my husband to both of them I think I ended up marrying my own personal Bray LOL… my husband isn't as sweet as Bray but his character leans more towards Bray then Lex… He even broods like Bray LOL… OMG I married a Bray clone! Oh well good for me !

New Reference

Bray = Leopard

Trista = Dove

Lily = Lynx

Lex = Bear

Checkers = Monkey


	8. Moon Set

AN/ Alright everyone, sorry for the major delay, once again. BUT I've gotten into a new Tribe kick because…. THE TRIBE HAS AN OFFICIAL FACEBOOK PAGE! They talk to us! They answer our questions! They have a live chat with Dwayne Cameron/Bray! They are putting out 2-3 books this year! They are possibly making a movie! They MIGHT MIGHT MIGHT bring back the tribe (a continuation possibly) So yes it is AWESOME! Check it out… on facebook just google The Tribe (official).

And now… for more!

Hope Beyond Hope 8

The days following the new tribe members' initiation were tedious. All of the old tribe members were not only trying to do their own chores but teach the initiates about the rules of the tribe. They also had to help the tribe guests with some of the basic chores as well. This caused a lot of strife and conflict in the small tribal group, Elia spent most of her days busy and then quickly passed out at night. Although this wasn't very good for a budding relationship Bray understood what was going on and didn't let it bother him that the only time they really spent together was meals and just before bed. Elia in a way saw it as a good thing simply because Bray had yet to get complete closure with his last relationship and it was never a good idea to start a new relationship until all problems were solved with the old one.

The winter passed slowly and by the time spring had FINALLY arrived tension were high within the mixed up group. One of the major problems and concerns was the low supplies that the group was dealing with. The guests had almost a week of travel ahead of them and were demanding to take a large portion of the remaining supplies with them. Elia and Joanna eventually had to put their foots down and tell the guests to suck it up, there would be no way for the tribe to get supplies while their leaders were gone so they needed to make sure that the tribe could survive for the two months that their leaders would be gone. This left each group with just enough food for two days. Beyond those days they were on their own, but they had been taught enough skills to be able to hunt and forage and should be alright.

It was finally time for each group to start their journeys. They found themselves at the edge of the forest saying farewell to new friends. Both groups would start off heading north together for about a half of a day before coming to a road. One direction lead inland towards three different cities each about a week of walking away from where they would find the road. The other direction headed towards a city that sat on the ocean. Elia's group would go towards that city. Bray and Martin use to live in a city that also resided close to the water and if they were lucky they would find a boat that could take them there and cut their journey in half if not in a quart, leaving more time for Bray and Martin to bond with their children.

Travel with the two groups was interesting, Kitty and Darien were happy and hyper but they clung to their new friends, who they would probably never see again. Both Bray and Martin were really good with the kids entertaining them and reassuring them that if they didn't find what they were looking for they were always welcome to come back to the tribe. The invitation was meant for the whole group, but for the adults it was implied that they should not return unless they were meaning to join the tribe. The small tribe couldn't support visitors they didn't have enough storage for excess and hunting took a lot out of the group.

Just before the groups parted ways Elia told Trista that in exactly two months, 60 days, they would meet back at this cross roads. Their group would be bringing supplies and Trista would come alone unless one of the children hadn't found their friends or family. With a final farewell the groups divided and the remainder of the trip was spent in quiet contemplation. Bray and Martin were imagining all the various ways the reunion with their children could go, good and bad. Elia and Joanna were fearing the worst, that Bray and Martin would see their children and old loves and totally forget about them. By the time they reached the city the group was feeling anxious and on edge. This anxiety was not diminished once they entered the city. It was PACKED! People were crowding the streets some in panic. The city felt almost as if it was about to go to war and this made the small group worry even more. "What's going on here? This city use to be nearly deserted before the technos came… why are there so many people here?"

Joanna decided that they needed to find out the reason for the invasion of the once peaceful city and they made their way to what use to be, and thankfully still was, the market. The venders' carts were mostly empty and this started to worry the group. They would need supplies for their tribe but it looked as if in this city it would be nearly impossible to get enough of what they needed.

Elia quickly found a familiar face in the crowd, it was a guy named Jack who she was friends with before the virus. He went by Hermes now because he had started his own messenger business once the virus hit. "Hey Hermes, what's going on here?"

The brown haired boy… no man now… he had to be about twenty-two… looked up and got a shocked look on his face "Tigress? That really you?"

She smirked and walked up giving him a quick hug "Yeah, technos got me but you know I've always been a fighter. Now answer my question… why are all these people here? This city use to only have ten tribes… maybe three hundred kids total… now there seems to be thousands crowding the streets"

He sighed shaking his head "One of the cities up the coast is uninhabitable… the technos tried to set off a new virus but luckily it failed… or so they say. The downfall is that the city is in shambles so a lot of their tribes are refuges at a few of the cities running along the coast, including ours"

She was shocked to say the least… the technos had destroyed a city? Tried to create a new virus… were they complete retards? She took a breath and nodded "What city?"

Hermes shrugged "Don't know the name… but it was one of the big ones… The one where Zoot use to rule if I remember right"

She was silent… Bray and Martin's city was destroyed… people probably died… where were the mall rats? "Do you know if any tribes were killed off?"

Hermes got a look in his eye and smirked "I'll tell you for a price"

Tigress growled and reached up flicking him in the forehead "Fine… I'll pay you… BUT only if you give me the info I'm looking for… Tell me about the Mall Rats and I'll give you one of the hides that my tribe got this winter… its warm and in good shape… would sell for a great price… BUT you only get it if you give me a general location of where they are located now… preferably the city they are in"

Hermes laughed and held out a hand "That I can do… where is the hide?"

With a sigh of relief she pulled a the pack from her back and dug through it pulling out a beautifully tanned hide that was nearly as big as she was tall. "Here… but info first… You know I wouldn't rip you off Hermes… we've been friends for a long time"

Hermes nodded and pointed to the west "They are here… took over the old mall, said it felt like their home turf. Lucky for them the technos took away most of the Hell Raisers and none of them returned."

To say Elia was shocked was an understatement.. they were here… this close? Oh my… well… that was good news, she hoped. "Thanks Hermes! I might need you in a few days to run to my tribe with a message then, we are going to need supplies and if we are sticking in town they should try to send up more of our trading goods. BUT I'll wait to send the message until I'm sure we are talking about the same Mall Rats"

Elia handed over the hide and turned making her way back through the crowd to where Joanna, Bray and Martin were standing trying to keep out of the way of the tense crowds. "Well I have good news and bad news… what do you want first?"

Bray and Martin exchanged a look before nodded "Bad News First… at least we can end on a good note"

Elia ran a hand through her hair… it was long… to long she would need to cut it soon.. oh well back to the point "Bad news, the technos went overboard they blew up a city! Nearly created a new virus and could have destroyed the world!"

Everyone gasped and waited confused and a bit worried "More Bad news, it was your city guys…"

She could see the fear in her boys eyes "The good news, the technos are no more AND the mall rats escaped… I don't know who but luckily they relocated here! SO we just have to head down to the local mall and see who all is here"

For what felt like an eternity everyone was dealthy quiet. Finally Bray reached out grabbing Elia's wrist. "Did you find out if everyone was ok? Any specific names on who was hurt or lost?"

Elia winced slightly at the pressure that he was putting on her wrist and thankfully he noticed quickly releasing her with an apologetic half smile. "No, but Hermes said that they took over the old hell Raisers territory. It isn't that far away from here, it should probably only take us ten… no with this crowd maybe twenty minutes to get there."

Martin looked a bit nervous but Bray quickly pushed for them to get started towards where ever the Mall Rats were now located. Elia and Joanna were both worried but tried to hide it from the boys. With some prompting, from Bray, Elia turned and lead the way towards the old Mall where the Mall Rats were now located. Luckily after they got out of the market place the crowds thinned out a bit and it didn't take as long as Elia had been expecting to get there. You could tell that at one time there used to be a group of deranged teenager occupying the mall. There was a discolored area that even though you couldn't still see the colors of the graffiti you could tell at one time there was what appeared to be HR with flames and what use to be a pitch fork. Bray guessed that if Salene was still with the tribe she was probably the one to commission the outside of the building cleaned up. As they got closer Bray noticed some familiar upgrades in the outside security. He quickly guessed that Jack was still with the group because of this and his smile grew.

Bray was about to charge into the Mall when Elia reached out grabbing his arm "Charging in isn't probably the best idea Bray. They might not take to kindly to Martin and we need to make sure that they don't swarm you before we can introduce him. Perhaps either Joanna or I should go in first"

Bray nodded briefly and leaned in kissing Elia quickly "You are right, I have waited two years to see my son a few minutes more won't hurt"

Elia nodded and looked at Joanna. Joanna smiled and nodded "You go in I'll stay here with the boys, and who knows maybe Ellie will be there and can make everything easier on you."

I groaned remembering the girl but nodded "Alright… wait outside the door but out of sight I'll send you a signal if it is safe to come in"

With another quick kiss from Bray and a hug from Joanna and Martin Elia quickly walked up to the doors and slipped into the small mall. She was greeted with a large metal grate keeping out unwelcome visitors. She looked for a few moments for another way to get in but apparently the Mall Rats were not taking any risks with their new home. Finally Elia just ended up banging on the grate "HELLO! ANY RATS IN THE HOUSE? ELLIE ARE YOU HERE!"

It took seconds before a long haired male came charging towards her growling and glaring "Who are you? What do you want? How do you know Ellie? How do you know about the Mall Rats? How did you know where we were? Why are you here?"

Lex.. it was easy to tell that this person was Lex from Bray's stories. She watched as many other Mall Rats came from various parts of the Mall. She didn't see Ellie among the crowed but hopefully that didn't mean that she hasn't made it back to her tribe yet. "Calm down Lexieboy I'll answer your questions if you would just stop asking them… give me time to breath"

Lex stopped his rambling but he seemed truly pissed that she would call him Lexieboy. Once everyone had quieted down Elia looked around and sighed. "My name is Tigress I am the coleader of the Forest Hallows Tribe, what I want is to speak with Amber and to see Ellie again. Um… what was your next question… oh yeah, I know about the Mall Rats first through Ellie and then through a mutual friend of ours. I knew where you are because I have connections in this city… and why am I here… well that's going to take a bit of an explanation"

Lex huffed crossing his arms trying to look big and bad but Elia ignored him looking through the group… "Amber? Which one of you is Amber"

A tall Blond woman stepped away from an even taller man, boy did Elia feel short compared to that duo. "I'm Amber what do you need?"

She was a lot nicer than Lex that's for sure. "At the Techno camp I came across one of your old tribe members. He was sick and hurt, once the technos left it was too close to winter so I took him and a few other members to my tribe until winter passed. I promised him that I would find his old tribe for him. I'll bring him here soon but first I need EVERYONE OF YOU to agree to something first"

Elia could see the glare in her eyes, she wasn't happy that I was holding a member of her tribe and wanting something in exchange… Oh well she could get over it. "What is your request than we'll agree or disagree"

Elia nodded "A member of my tribe is… familiar with you. He says that if you saw him there would be violent consequences. He's not a threat to you anymore but I will not tolerate you trying to attack him when you meet him. He is now a member of MY tribe and is married to my co leader. And she means EVERYTHING to me… I won't let you cause harm of any kind… emotional or physical to her or her mate… can I get your word that you will leave him alone and not attack him."

Lex put up a fuss but Jay and Ram quickly pointed out that at one time many of the tribe members were 'enemies' to the Mall Rats and that everyone deserved a second chance. Finally everyone, even Lex, agreed to not attack him, BUT if he were to cause them any harm it would be on Elia's head. Once that was settled the grate was lifted and Elia walked towards the entrance poking her head out and letting out a soft chuffing sound. With that signal she turned and walked in quickly followed by first Joanna then Bray. A few steps behind Bray was Martin but no one seemed to notice him at first. "BRAY!"

Amber stood totally shocked that Bray was standing there in front of her. Ellie must not have told them about seeing him again… or she didn't return… Elia didn't want to contemplate that option. Trudy pushed through the crowd and tackled Bray crying and hugging him. Elia could easily see how much Bray had been missed among the Mall Rats. Everyone seemed glad to see him return except for Lex, Jay and Ram. Ebony seemed even a bit happy to see him. Sadly it was Lex who first saw Martin. Luckily with his short hair and the burns Lex didn't recognize him "Who's the bloke? He doesn't look like anyone I've met before?"

It was Trudy who Gasped and let out an ear piercing scream before fainting. Ebony was the next to recognize Martin "Zoot?"

Martin visibly flinched and shook his head "Martin… I'm Martin… well actually I'm Jaguar now."

With a feral roar Lex tried to charge Martin but Elia quickly stepped between them rearing her fist back and slugging the unsuspecting Lex in the jaw. "I warned you, lay off. I will not warn you again"

Lex was about to charge Elia but Ram, Jay and Slade held him back "You gave your word Lex and he hasn't done anything to you yet"

Old grudges die hard they say… Elia guessed that Lex just couldn't get over the past very easily. "Calm down please, Martin isn't hear to hurt anyone. He just wants to see Brady… And I want to see my son" Bray announced hoping to help calm down the group.

Selene walked forward and smiled "Amber… should I go get the kids?"

Amber looked over frowning at the somewhat waking Trudy "I don't mind if Bray sees Bray Jr. but it's up to Trudy if Zo… Martin sees Brady"

Salene nodded sadly and gave Martin a sad smile "She'll come around I'm sure of it… things just got really rough when the guardian was around"

Martin nodded and watched Trudy silently. Joanna walked over to him and wrapped her arms around his waist in a comforting hug "I'm sure she'll be alright with it Martin we just have to show her that you aren't Zoot anymore"

Martin smiled down at Joanna and wrapped his arms around her in return. There was a awe how sweet from a girl that Elia didn't know from the stories (Gel). Trudy woke up and took a look at Martin about to scream again but Ram smacked her across the face. "What? I always wanted to do that" he intoned before he could get into trouble.

It had worked Trudy didn't scream or faint though she glared at the ex-techno leader. "You can't take my child Martin… I won't let you"

Martin sighed shaking his head "I don't want to take her, I just want to see her, meet her. Please Truds I missed so much of her life already. Don't keep me totally out of it now"

Trudy debated for a moment but slowly nodded "Fine, but you have to always be around either Jay, Amber, Selene or me with her."

Martin quickly agreed he would do anything to see his little girl. Selene squealed and ran off to another part of the mall to get the kids. Amber the whole time just standing there staring at Bray. It was Jack who asked the question that was on everyone's mind "So Bray you back for good man?"

Bray sighed and shook his head "No, I have a new tribe now. We aren't that far from here though, about two days. I'm really amazed that everything ended up as it did but trust me I'm glad that you guys chose to come here."

Trudy wailed a bit at the idea of Bray leaving but Jay seemed relieved. Amber seemed torn "Why Bray? Your family is here… you would leave them just to go live with a tribe that you have only been with for a few months? What about your tribe? Our Tribe?"

Bray turned his eyes on Amber and sighed "My family is in both places Amber. Bray Jr. Here and Martin with the Forest Hallow Tribe. Elia saved me, she saved a lot of people from starving and dying. I can't ignore that, and what our tribe? Last I knew both of us had been kicked out of the city and in turn the tribe."

Amber sputtered "Then you and Martin can come here!" Jay looked furious, Elia and Joanna were both glaring daggers at Amber as well.

"Amber Martin is Happy in the Forest Hallow tribe and he has a wife that is the leader… you expect him to just leave her or make her leave her tribe, her best friend and sister?"

Amber growled "What about me Bray? Your niece Brady? Trudy? What about that family?"

Bray shook his head "You aren't family Amber, the moment I was gone you took up with a techno, Ellie told me when I saw her in the camp. I'm happy where I am I just want to be able to come visit my son whenever I'm in town. I want my son to be able to come visit me whenever he wants. Amber we've been separated for two years. You've moved on, let me. I'm happy, I'm happy where I am, I'm happy being with my brother and I'm happy with Elia. I've moved on too so let me be happy."

Amber yowled in anger and stormed away. Only moments later Salene came in with a toddling Bray jr. and a six five year old Brady "What's going on?"

Jack sighed "Bray isn't staying with us, he's gonna stay with his new tribe, his brother and his new girlfriend. Amber just blew a gasket"

Selene sighed shaking her head "She can't have everything… she'll eventually get over it"

Jay was torn, should he go after Amber or stay and make sure that Bray Jr. was alright with his… dad… that term upset him. Bray Jr had just started calling him Da and he had thought for a moment that he would get to keep that title. He loved the little boy and here his dad was back and going to take the title and Amber was flipping out because apparently she still wanted her son's father. Elia watched the conflict that ran through Jay's eyes and could easily agree with the emotions.

Salene quickly handed Bray Jr. to his father and smiled "Bray, meet Bray Jr. Bray Jr. meet your father"

She then looked at Trudy "You want to do the honors momma?"

Trudy gulped but nodded walking over and kneeling down in front of the small girl "Brady baby. Remember me telling you about your daddy. Brady this is your daddy Martin"

The tiny girl looked from her mom to the man standing beside them. She had heard about her daddy, and not all good things, though her mom tried to keep the bad things away from her. She turned letting her eyes roam the man for a moment before she beamed and held out her hand "I'm Brady!"

Martin laughed and knelt down shaking her hand "I'm Martin though I would hope you would call me daddy or even dad"

The little girl contemplated for a moment before nodding "Alight Dad!" She then reached out wrapping her arms around his neck in a tight embrace. Trudy, Salene, Joanna and even Elia quickly tried to keep from crying but Gel let out a squeal that startled everyone for a brief moment.

Elia watched the group, Bray holding his son. Martin with his young daughter wrapped around him. The Mall Rats tribe watching the reunion with a mixture of Joy and anxiety. No one knew what would happen from here on but they could only hope that everything would work out in the end.

AN Ok everyone I hope you like the update!


	9. The Hour Before Dawn

AN: I am soooo sorry to all my loyal tribies out there. I've been so caught up since January with TTO (The Tribe Official) on Facebook. Plus I'm trying to help put together a Convention for The Tribe here in the states :) Lots of work. Also working on writing my own book as well… so much going on… plus college LOL. But I'm really going to try to finish this story up… And hopefully edit the rest to fix all the mistakes I'm finding every time I read it. (yes I read my own stories it's how I keep the facts as straight as possible) OK so on with the story…

Hope Beyond Hope

Chapter 9

It didn't take long for Brady to drag her much missed Uncle Bray and her newly discovered dad off to the room that had been designated the kids play area. There with a makeshift tea set she forces both of the adults to play tea party with her. Joanna was quickly asked, begged, to join by an uneasy Martin and soon Trudy joined as well. Although at first there was a little tension between Trudy and Joanna it didn't take much to resolve it. Trudy didn't seem to harbor any feelings for her ex and Joanna was never one to dislike an ex. Baby Bray was sitting in his father's lap trying to get his attention.

It was an interesting site for Elia and she stood back by the entrance watching with a smile on her face. It seemed like everything was working out ok for now. Both boys were happy to see their children and the Mallrats didn't seem too against them being there. She sighed and glanced over her shoulder at the only two others who had remained with the group. Amber was watching with a scowl on her face and Jay looked worried. Elia quickly glanced back at Bray who seemed content and fully distracted. Now was the perfect time to slip out and so she easily moved back and out of the room. Once this was accomplished she waited for a few moments and her patience was rewarded when Jay quickly followed. Neither would be missed by the distracted group and although it bothered both of them this was a bit more important.

The moment they were a decent way away from the room Elia turned on a dime and pounced on the taller male "JAY! Oh gosh, I didn't recognize you at first… You've changed so much and grown at least a foot since I last saw you!"

Jay laughed and returned the hug enthusiastically. "I can't say you've grown but you've changed to Elia. You look nothing like the last time I saw you"

They quickly released each other but kept close. "I really didn't realize who you were until I heard you talk but by then I was more focused on keeping Lex from attacking Martin than worrying about our reunion."

Jay laughed and reached up ruffling Elia's hair, she glared at him and poked him in the ribs. "Don't worry about it Elia, I didn't recognize you until you and Joanna were together. You've changed to much over the past few years and sometimes memories from before the virus get pushed to the back of my mind."

She laughed and nodded "So we'll just call it even and pretend that it didn't happen. So I don't see Ved around here. Did you get tired of playing babysetter?"

Jay's smile vanished quickly and his eyes drifted away from her. Elia knew something bad had happened and patiently waited for him to tell her. "He was deleted by the technos and no one knows where he is, not even Ram. We haven't had any luck tracking him down"

Elia sighed and reached out embracing Jay in a comforting hug. They were interrupted by a thumping noise and a loud gasp. Elia leaned her head back a little and looked over her shoulder towards the source of the noise. Salene was standing there and at her feet was what looked like a laundry basket full of kids clothing. It didn't take much to figure out what the girl must have thought when she saw the two hugging in the hallway. For a moment Jay tried to move away from Elia but with a growl she tightened her embrace refusing to be ashamed of comforting her friend. "Hello, and before you say anything it's a hug… nothing scandalous."

Salene shook her head and seemed to doubt what Elia was saying. With a sigh Elia finally released Jay and put her hands on her hips… "I've known Jay since I was a four, he is… was my cousin through marriage and we grew up together. Last time I saw him was 2 months after the virus killed our parents. We, Joanna, Ved, Jay and I were traveling together but Ved got an itch to join a tribe and Jay went with him to keep an eye on him. Joanna and I didn't want to join that tribe so we parted ways. He's family and he just told me that Ved is missing."

Salene gasped and nodded "Oh ok"

Elia watched as Salene quickly picked up the basket and walked away. She shook her head then looked at Jay "Interesting tribe you joined Blue Jay… a suspicious bunch of rats"

Jay glared and playfully shoved Elia's shoulder "They have a good reason to be, I'm an ex techno and a bit of a heart breaker"

Elia shook her head crossing her arms and attempted to glare down her nose at Jay, which was a feat considering he was at least a foot taller than her. "Playing with girls hearts Blue Jay didn't I teach you better when I shoved that dirtball down your shirt when you broke Lilliana's heart in fourth grade?"

He laughed and Elia quickly joined in. When they had both settled he told her a short version of the past two years with the tribe including his short 'relationship' with Trudy and the fiasco that he called a relationship with Amber. Elia knew this was not going to be easy, it appeared that Amber, though in a relationship with Jay, still had her heart set on Bray. They were just asking for drama and Elia didn't like drama.

"Jay it's getting late and I need to head out into town and try to find someplace for my tribe mates to stay. This city is overflowing with people so it's going to be pretty hard so I better get to it"

Jay laughed "We're living in a Mall Elia we have room… Some of the rooms are still off limits thanks to the previous Tribe that lived here but I think there are a few stores that are clean enough for you guys to stay. I'll take you to them and we can see if we can find you a place to stay. Besides I don't think you could find a place to stay in this city that won't cost you all your supplies just for a single night."

Elia reluctantly nodded "True but is the rest of the Tribe going to want us to stay? I mean it is only temporary but I know not all of the Mall Rats like Martin and only you know me and Joanna they might not be comfortable with us staying here."

Jay shrugged his shoulders "They will take a vote later tonight and it will be decided… for now let's find you some rooms. Hopefully if you get situated they will be less likely to kick you out. But the best bet is to make sure your rooms are as far from the kids as possible just so the mom's feel more comfortable. SO come on Elia were wasting time here arguing."

"Fine! Lead the way oh noble one!"

Jay snorted and the two walked down the hall towards the section of the mall that still needed work. Most of the halls still had Hell Raiser's graffiti but the rooms were mostly just trashed. Out of the 10 stores on this wing of the mall only 2 looked like they could be habitable with only a little effort. One was an old shoe store and still had the faint scent of old leather. It was a nice smell and Elia quickly claimed that as her new 'home' for the duration of their stay. The other store was an old candle store and still had the stench of all the old candles soaked into every pore of the room. It had faded some over time so it didn't bother most people but Elia quickly backed out of the room saying that Joanna could stay there.

When they didn't find any other rooms Jay frowned "Well, why don't you and Joanna stay in one room and Martin and Bray can stay in the other"

Elia snorted and shook her head "No way Jay, Joanna and Martin are inseparable. Plus Martin has nightmares and if Joanna isn't there when he wakes up he freaks out."

Jay nodded, it was understandable a lot of the kids who survived the virus had nightmares. "Ok then we'll have to figure something out for Bray then"

Elia sighed and shook her head "Jay are you really that dense? Me and him can share a room"

Jay frowned and shook his head, he was playing 'big brother' again and it annoyed her. "Oh stop that, me and him share a hut back at camp and I can almost guarantee you have no room to judge. I know you well enough to know you're probably sharing a room with Amber"

He looked away but Elia saw his blush and snorted. "Were not kids any more Jay, were all grown up, adults in this world and even in the old world."

Jay nodded and quickly tried to change the subject "So your tribe at home. How does that work? I've never been much into the outdoors thing."

Elia laughed "We have a few larger cabins we've build. But as leaders Joanna and I get our own huts. They are much smaller really only one room shacks but its nice. I share mine with Bray, Lex and Lily"

Jay's look of confusion made Elia smile "They are my niece and nephew"

Jay's eyes went wide and his jaw dropped "You're sister had kids and dumped them on you?"

Elia growled shaking her head "NO! My brother had kids but was too old and died of the virus. You didn't know him, he was a lot older than us. His girlfriend was a few years younger than him and she was pregnant with the twins when he died. Then she died and I found them. Lily has some bad dreams a lot like Martin and she doesn't like to be away from me. She's also grown fond of Bray and if I can't be there he's a decent substitute."

Jay gave Elia a look that said 'I'm sorry' and she just brushed it off. "So are there any kind of pallets or something I can make a bed out of around here?"

"Yeah, the hell raisers used hammocks I can probably find a few that should work. Want me to go track them down?"

Elia nodded "Yeah, we won't put them up until after the vote but it's good to have them ready so we can put them up quickly and get some sleep. I don't know about the others but I'm exhausted from our trip"

Jay nodded and quickly left the room. Elia stood looking at the empty room and let out a breath she had been holding. These next few months were not going to be easy. She was happy to be reunited with her old friend Jay and was happy that the boys were spending time with their kids but she could already tell that chaos was going to run ramped while they were there. Amber was going to be a problem, and she didn't much like the stress that came with ex girlfriends. But for Bray she would deal with it.. at least for now.

AN

I know its short, but I wanted to update after so long!

OOOOH and awesome news I got to talk to Dwayne Cameron back in January! I won a phonecall with him on Facebook The Tribe Official's page! It was so awesome! He's such a sweety! Hope I get to talk to him again sometime!

KTDA!


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